Parallel Running Old version
by Mr CJ
Summary: If you have -reality itself- on the line... at what cost would you go to save it? Shows an alternative view of the Canon stories, if Kyon was actually the God with the SOS Brigade trying to hide this from him before it's too late... REWRITE IN PROGRESS
1. 01: Of Cheats and Liars

**Parallel Running**  
_A Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya fanfiction  
MrCJ/Guessmyname_

_Many thanks to Dracobolt, my Beta Reader_

_Please don't sue_

* * *

**Chapter One  
_Of Cheats and Liars_**

* * *

It's Saturday, and that means another meeting. We do it once a week, as may be obvious, all of us arriving one hour before the agreed time, which is less obvious - and purposefully so. We meet outside, which makes it harder for our enemies to listen in and makes us look to the outside world like a bunch of teenagers meeting on a corner. That might be a problem if it rains, but after several months of this, such an event has yet to occur. Such are the advantages of having a quasi-deity on your side.

Nagato arrived first as might be expected, and was standing still and stoic beneath a telephone pole as always when I arrived some time later, glasses shining against the sun. She nodded - not at lot, given that we were outside, but enough to show she'd seen me. I took my place by her side and leant again the pole to watch the world walk by around me. It was a beautiful weekend day, so naturally everyone was out in force to enjoy it. It's a small wonder that no-one's noticed these Saturdays all seem to be the same. We may have to do something about that soon too; a new person is joining the meeting from now on, someone very good at noticing such things when we'd really rather he wouldn't...

Despite standing alone with a girl in the middle of a commercial district, I didn't get that much attention. Nagato never looks particularly romantic at... well, ever, and the two of us stood apart rather than together. I imagine we probably looked more like brother and sister. The height differences helped.

Third to arrive was Asahina Mikuru. She smiled and waved to us energetically beneath a blue cardigan and white sundress, getting a pleasant smile from me and another mini-nod from Nagato. Out of all of us, I'd say Mikuru is the most genuine. She really is that cheerful and happy, no lie or acting required. At least until you consider that her mind was deliberately rewired that way by whoever sent her, at which point the earlier definition blurs. I've no idea what the real her is like. Maybe that makes her the best actor out of all of us. Who can say; she certainly can't.

She ran up cheerfully and nipped in between myself and Nagato, smiling heartily to the both of us. _Now_ I got odd looks. Whether this was because I had a girl to die for right next to me and I was just leaning on a telephone post or because we looked like a couple is something you can decide for yourself.

We stood there for a few minutes, which Asahina spent futilely trying to coax a response out of Yuki. Then the last member of our little acting troupe arrived. Haruhi Suzumiya, helpfully pointed out by Nagato the moment she entered the street, looked as she normally did. Big white coat, short hair, yellow ribbons, you know who I'm talking about. She smiled when she saw us, not one of those of 'gonna eat the world now' smiles (as she calls them) that she does on the job or one of those 'facial twitch' style things from Nagato, just an honestly warm smile. One worth getting up early for. We waved, she walked over, and so assembled, the meeting began.

As always, an update from all of us was in order. Mikuru started the ball rolling with her usual perkiness, cheerfully reporting that her group had made no progress whatsoever. Haruhi gave a good account of His mental state; nothing had really changed, but in this case it's to be expected. Changing people is a gradual process after all. She gave us a few ideas to try in the future, and I agreed to pass them on to the Organisation's group of psychologists for evaluation. My turn rolled around, not that I had much to say that they didn't know already, and finally we turned to Nagato.

She pushed her glasses up her nose a bit. Always an important sign.

"The Integrated Sentient Data Entity has decided on a new course of action. To prevent a case of Miss Suzumiya appearing the villain and sole cause of problems, we suggest introducing an opposing element."

Haruhi raised an eyebrow. "I didn't ask him for these powers you know."

Nagato nodded. "We are aware and mean no disrespect. We are merely considering events from the Subject's perspective. Through his eyes, you are annoyance. You are responsible for all reality distortions and breakings of normalcy."

The demi-god just groaned and put a hand to her head. "Not my fault..."

Another nod. "We are aware. To eclipse this, we need to present an opposing force whose threat level greatly outclasses that of Miss Suzumiya."

I smiled, catching on to the idea. "You think we need a villain."

Mikuru didn't. "B-But we can't reveal the existence of the Canopy Domain! That would just-"

"We are aware."

Mikuru shut up.

Nagato turned back to me and Haruhi and continued her outline. In situations like these, she's directly linked to the Data Thought Entity. They are called Interfaces for a reason, after all. At these times, she's more like a living mouthpiece, though Yuki is still present in the conversation and occasionally provides input of her own; it's not possession exactly, just her taking the mental backseat and letting her bosses do the talking. It's like two people speaking through the same mouth, and can take some getting used to. I know Mikuru hasn't.

"To provide a villain, but not reveal the Canopy Domain, we propose introducing a split in our own."

I raised an eyebrow. "You mean one of us here?"

Nagato shook her head. "Negative. We refer to ourselves. We will split the Interfaces into factions. These factions will not be united; some may be violent. In doing so, elements of tension will be introduced, causing a more clearer danger to distract from Miss Suzumiya."

Haruhi nodded in understanding. "Any volunteers?"

Nagato shook her head, the gesture identical to the one before. "We have assigned Asakura Ryoko for this mission. As a class member, it will introduce a further element of shock, increasing the distraction. An assassination attempt will be staged, with myself victor. This will also further the Subject's connection to me, increasing bonds of camaraderie and trust."

"And Asakura?" I asked: I wouldn't put it past the Data Entity to simply take Asakura and hit their equivalent of the delete key.

"She will be relocated." Nagato assured.

"To where?"

"Canada."

"_Canada?_"

"Yes. Canada."

"E-Erm..." Added Mikuru, clearly lost, the perpetual sympathy machine firing on all cylinders.

"Asakura Ryoko has already accepted the mission. As long as no actual murder occurs, she has no issue with the operation."

Haruhi and I raised an eyebrows at that one. I didn't know the Interfaces could have 'issues' with direct orders or decline assigned tasks. Haruhi said as such, causing Nagato - actual Nagato, not the IDTE using her as a puppet - to cock her head to one side. "It's... complicated. Direct orders cannot be disobeyed, but conflicting orders are to be avoided. Personality errors due to conflicting moral protocols are a non-desirable outcome."

Then her head snapped back into it's usual emotionless pose like a juttery video recording and the Thought Entity took over again. "The operation will be initiated by the end of the following week. If there are any complications or issues with the plan, please make us aware of them before this time."

And, like a flickering light, Nagato returned to being Nagato again. She blinked once, then looked at me as if to confirm where she was before nodding and taking a step back, indicating that the Data Entity had said all it wanted to say.

Silence descended over our little huddle, all but one mulling over what had been said, with the one not doing the mulling being simply quiet by design. Haruhi frowned, more a sign that she was deep in thought than actually angry. Nagato was staring straight ahead blandly, whilst I rubbed my chin intellectually. The Organisation didn't really have much of a hand in this, so there was little reason for interference on our end. Mikuru was still lost, but given that she had even less to do with this than I did, we didn't pay her much attention. It's best not to, really.

Haruhi was about to say something when Nagato's bland staring abruptly broke, her head whipping around to focus on something in the distance. "Subject approaching, 12.613 degrees North, 76.921 metres, 0.96 miles per hour (average)."

Haruhi swallowed in irritation and swivelled around on the spot in perfect pirouette while I slipped back into my relaxed smile, with Nagato and Mikuru adjusting themselves accordingly: Nagato went up a level in stoicness, while Mikuru simply tried to calm down. I wonder if they can be called lucky; neither of them really have to put an act like myself, or Suzumiya but then they pay for this advantage in other ways. At least I can be sure I have my own free will and my brain intact.

Haruhi was still frowning.

"Get in role!" I hissed, my eyes still on the crowds and my smile not missing a beat.

"I am in role!" Haruhi hissed back.

At that moment, He chose to exit the crowds, brown hair fluttering in the wind slightly and the usual expression of disbelief printed on His face seguing into a frown when he saw us standing there, already waiting.

With an animalistic grin, Haruhi adopted the most arrogant-defiant pose she could and raised the pointy finger. "You're late! You've got to be fined!"

Under the Brigade Chief's deathly glare, Subject Kyon panicked.

* * *

"Now, let's draw lots!"

*

A boy and a girl / time-travelling brain-fried maid sat nervously under scrutiny at a café table.

"Kyon, you listen, this is not a date! Be serious, you understand?"

"OK already!"

* * *

Asahina and her Target had left a while ago, leaving us standing listlessly on the curbside. This was the first time we'd done something like this; no-one was entirely sure what to do when the object of our attentions was no longer around.

"Well..." I asked to no-one in particular, "now what?"

Haruhi shrugged, Nagato did nothing at all. Such enthusiastic comrades...

"Wander?" Haruhi suggested.

"Library." Nagato intoned calmly.

"Well, we should get back here for lunch." I said, checking my watch. Haruhi nodded and Nagato simply blinked. I wondered if she understood the concept of 'lunchtime'.

"Well," said Haruhi, giving the blank Nagato a nervous look. "I'm off."

"Don't buy anything large." I advised. "It would look odd if we came back with shopping bags."

Haruhi nodded and waved goodbye, leaving me standing with Nagato.

Nagato stood blankly.

I stood watching Nagato standing blankly.

This continued long enough for my legs to tire.

"...lunch?" Nagato asked, almost inaudibly over the noise of commuters and weekend traffic.

"Yes," I replied with my trademark smile, "lunch."

Nagato went back to looking blank. I suddenly realised the Interface was using all of its processing power trying to understand the concept of 'lunch' and tried not to laugh.

"What's wrong?" I asked at length.

"Lunch." Nagato intoned. "Shortened form of luncheon. Noun/Verb, meaning 'midday meal'." She paused. "Not a statement or measurement of time."

Ah, I see what's wrong. I smiled again. "Don't worry about it. Just be back here by 12."

Nagato nodded in understanding, before disappearing entirely in the blink of an eye.

I suppose it's a bit absurd for a human to be ordering around an Interface for the data-equivalent of God, but that's the kind of world we live in. Alone again, I simply shrugged and walked off myself, leaving our spot in front of the station behind.

* * *

I didn't really have anywhere to go. I don't think Haruhi had anything in mind either; she was just wandering idly for the hell of it. I felt mildly miffed I hadn't been invited too until realised she'd probably be window-shopping, at which point I was quite glad not to be tagging along.

Still, wandering aimlessly is rather boring.

I passed shops, karaoke stalls, all that stuff, stopping off at a café to get a cup of liquid gold (coffee) to help keep me awake for longer. It was in one of those cheap paper cup things and piping hot; I was testing the temperature when I walked right into someone completely by accident.

Two things tipped me off that this wasn't a normal person. Firstly: I didn't see her. Even if she is a head shorter than I am, I'm a trained observer: I don't walk into people, period. Secondly: I just tipped boiling hot coffee all over her head and she doesn't seem to have noticed.

Kuyoh Suou looked up at me with glass-like eyes.

"Shit!"

I jumped back, coffee cup falling to the floor with an ignored splash. Suou simply observed, boiling steam rising out of her mass of hair with an ignored hiss, scalding drops of black liquid draining off strands of black hair and dribbling down her white skin like fake tears.

"______" said Kuyoh.

I don't go out armed. Sure, I know how to use a firearm, but I don't carry one except on the odd mission, never on my own time or around Kyon. It probably wouldn't have done anything against Suou anyway. Just as the Integrated Data Entity has its Interfaces, the Sky Canopy Domain has its own. I've only seen one before, namely the one standing before me now, but I've heard of others. They all look alike, down to the individual hairs on their heads. For all it's lack of understanding of human culture, the Canopy seems to have understood the teachings of one Henry Ford just fine.

They're also impossibly dangerous.

"please..." Kuyoh began, her lips not quite in synch with her voice. "do not___ undertake______ outside__ contact."

The people around me began to fizzle out like dying candles as the colour of the world around me faded away like a dying picture. The brown-black coffee at my feet turned a dull grey right before my eyes.

"___lockdown initiated________ this space is Closed."

I backed up. Kuyoh followed.

"please..." she repeated, like a voice synthesiser with only one intonation. "listen."

"Listen?"

"yes. listen."

Kuyoh took another step forward. I tried to step back but found myself blocked by a brick wall that hadn't been there before.

"i bring__________________ news." Kuyoh said tonelessly.

Before I'd even noticed, brick walls had appeared around us, blocking us in entirely. I hadn't any space to move to either side or back: they were behind me and brushing up against my shoulders. I couldn't feel a thing: no rough feeling of cold mortar or stone beneath my hands, just a flat, texture-less plane. The only reason I could tell they were there was because I couldn't move past them. The corridor ended with me and extended past Kuyoh into infinity. The sky had a turned a flat grey; just pure monochrome, and even the floor had the same non-existent quality underfoot.

"we need________ download?"

I was trapped in this endless corridor that ended with me. The only conceivable way out was past Kuyoh. Like hell that would work.

"no... we need______ "

The ghostly doll took another step forward. I couldn't exactly stop her.

"____________information."

Kuyoh didn't even raise a hand to my head. She didn't seem to do anything at all, but even so, the world dissolved into black anyway.

* * *

I woke up because Haruhi was nudging me with her foot.

"Koizumi! What's wrong with you? It's noon already!"

"Mmm?"

My head didn't hurt. I just felt a bit... cold?

"Of course you're cold, you're sleeping on a bench!"

Huh?

I lifted myself up into a sitting position. The wooden bench felt rough and hard beneath my hands. Haruhi was watching me irritably, her golden yellow ribbons dangling loosely in front of her face.

Funny, I don't feel tired...

"Come on!" Haruhi said, grabbing my arm and hauling me off the bench despite my protests. "It's noon already! Nagato's waiting for us!"

When did I fall asleep? I have no memory of this...

"Come on! Koziumi! This isn't like you at all!"

I let Haruhi drag me off to the station, feeling strangely empty for some reason.

Did I miss something?

* * *

"What about you, Kyon-kun?"

"Sadly, mine is marked."

A frown of undue fury at an innocent toothpick.

"We'll meet in front of the station by four. Be sure to find something by then!"

* * *

"Urgh..."

"You okay? Need to rest a while?"

"No, I'm good... gonna need a loo soon though."

I helped Suzumiya stay upright, keeping her arm over my shoulder before she could double over on her knees and vomit in the middle of the street.

"Do I really have to keep up this whole 'genki' thing?" she pleaded, gripping her stomach in obvious pain. "Urp!"

"Careful! And yes, I'm afraid you do." I replied as gently as I could whilst rubbing her back. She swallowed again, taking deep, panting breaths before trying to wave me off again.

"...I'm okay, I'm okay. Ergh, drinking an entire pop cup was a bad idea..."

"You held your character, you did well!"

"Tell that to my bladder..."

"A-ano..." Mikuru hovered behind us, useless as ever. I decided to reverse this for once and waved her over.

"Here!" I said, hoisting the limp Haruhi over to her. Asahina rushed forwards instantly, catching the ill girl as though I was going to let her fall. "Get her to a bathroom, clean her up."

The time-traveller nodded and supported Haruhi's limp to freedom, a walking testament to the dangers of taking fast food too fast.

With Nagato off escorting Kyon and Mikuru hauling Haruhi off to pay her respects to the porcelain god, I didn't have much to do besides lean back against the wall and wait. I rested my head against the cool brick and closed my eyes, letting my mind retire for a while...

..."Koizumi-kun?"

I awoke with a jerk.

"Kimidori-san?" I replied, blinking a few times at the green-haired girl to clear my eyes and running a quick hand through my hair to try and smooth it out a bit. I have appearances and standards to keep up to after all.

Emiri smiled sweetly with calm eyes, holding a plain white shopping bag with both hands. "Pleased to meet you again."

I nodded. "Likewise."

"Yuki-san reports the Subject is asleep in the Seaside Library. Suzumiya-san and Miss Asahina are currently in a Pharmaceuticals store purchasing stomach medicine. They shall return shortly."

"I, er... Thank you!"

Kimidori just smiled again and gave a polite bow before continuing on her way and disappearing around a corner. I blinked again, scratching the back of my head to try and wake up a bit more and looked around. It was a good thing Kyon wasn't here. The street was just as busy as before, I don't think I was out that long. Soon enough, I spotted Haruhi and Mikuru walking side by side in my general direction. Mikuru waved happily as usual whilst Haruhi looked vaguely stiff. I pushed off the wall and walked over.

"Hi!" Mikuru announced with a joyful smile. I smiled back politely.

"Was that Kimidori-san just now?" Haruhi asked, looking deflated and tired.

I nodded. "He's in the Seaside Library with Nagato. They'll be there a while."

"Oh good." Haruhi said weakly with a tired smile. "Time for me to rest then."

* * *

We let Haruhi sleep soundly on a bench, with Asahina sitting at one end and using her own lap as a cushion. As this took up the entire bench, I had to adopt my usual pose with a lamp post. My legs are getting tired from all this standing around...

"How is she?" I asked, looking down at the bench-bound couple.

"She should be fine." Asahina replied, stroking the ill girl's hair and beaming. "The pills have a slight sedative effect, that's why she's so sleepy."

She stroked a lock of hair away from Haruhi's eyes with a loving gesture. "She's so brave, doing all of this for us."

I grimaced. It was a good thing our Organisation had contacted her as soon as we'd found out what had happened. The tantrums stopped after a while, and with a good three years training we'd created the person you see now, temporarily unconscious from the wonders of modern medicine. Miss Asahina seemed to be treating her like a natural saint. I wondered how the real Mikuru would respond.

She looked up when I stifled a yawn. "Tired?"

I nodded. "Briefings and debriefings with the higher ups. Took all night by teleconference."

Asahina pouted in sympathy, before shuffling up on the bench, Haruhi retracting into a foetal position with a slight groan. She patted the now free space by her side motherly.

"Here, rest. I'll keep an eye out."

"You're sure?"

She nodded, beaming away cutely again. "Yes!"

I smiled gratefully, being careful to lean away from the girls before succumbing to blissful sleep myself. I felt Mikuru pat my head affectionately as I went out.

* * *

I'll go on record here and state that almost all dreams are nonsense.

Mine was no exception.

* * *

"Koizumi-kun?"

I jerked awake and nearly sent the sleeping Mikuru on my shoulder slumping off the bench.

I blinked a few times to clear my eyes.

"Kimidori-san...?"

"It is half past four. Yuki-san is requesting an update. The Subject is not awake."

I jerked into action all over again, pulling my hand out of my pocket to reveal my watch. Just as Emiri said, it was 4:30. Half an hour after we said to meet. "He's still asleep?" I asked.

Kimidori nodded patiently. I sighed wearily, thanking the heavens for that piece of fortune. Perhaps in response, Asahina chose this moment to wake up with a start.

"Eeh?"

Emiri's pleasant smile switched targets and doubled in intensity.

"Eeeeh?"

"Greetings, Miss Asahina."

"E-Emiri-san..."

Kimidori turned back to me, bowed, "May we meet again soon." and disappeared again. Mikuru fidgeted in confusion. Then she noticed who she was leaning on.

"EEEEEEEEH?"

"Mrrh? Whazzgoinon..."

With a groan to wake the dead, Haruhi rose to a sitting position like a mummy rising from a crypt.

"Urgh... ow, my head..."

I got up and rounded the bench as she raised a tender arm to her even more tender forehead. I crouched down to meet her eye level and gave a pleasant smile. Everyone should have a pleasant smile when they wake up with a hangover in the middle of the street at dusk.

"What happened, I get a head injury or something?" She asked, trying to focus on me blearily as I rummaged a hand through her bag.

I smiled back pleasantly. "No, just some medication that knocked you out for a while."

Haruhi grunted and went back to rubbing her forehead, eyes closed against the evils of bright afternoon sunlight.

"Haruhi."

An eye creaked open. "What?"

I produced her cellphone, holding it out like a mother offering candy to a child. She produced another groan.

"It's 4:30. We need you to contact him."

Suzumiya snapped awake to full alert status with an icy glare and snatched the phone out of my hand. A flick of a wrist flipped it open, ringing twice before being picked up.

"You idiot!" She shouted down the line, without so much as breaking eye contact with me. I winced in response. "What have you been doing!? What time do you think it is now? ...What!? You dumbass! Get your asses over here at once! I give you thirty seconds!"

My my, she doesn't even have to feign her irritation. How lucky.

She set the phone to automatically redial him every few seconds (yes, it can do that) and handed it back, where it returned to the dark depths of Haruhi's handbag.

"That should bring him running..." she stifled a yawn and dragged herself up to her feet. "Right, we need to get back to the station... Come on Mikuru!"

We walked back to station as fast as we could, with me taking a position just behind Haruhi in case she lost her balance again. Mikuru, still a bit befuddled as normal, walked alongside us pleasantly. The station wasn't that far away from the burger shop, and we made it in good time. Haruhi leaned against the wall and slipped a caffeine pill, Mikuru sort of just stood there (cheerfully), whilst I kept a lookout for our wayward charges.

They arrived shortly, her deftly weaving through the press of people like a skier slaloming through trees while he did his best to follow in her silent wake. Haruhi straightened up a bit upon seeing their approach, whilst Asahnia gave an exhausted but oddly relieved smile. "You're late; pay the fine!"

* * *

"That was fun today! How should I say this? Suzumiya-san really is an interesting person. It's a pity I couldn't be with you today, perhaps next time."

I patted him on the shoulder and walked away, losing them in the crowd. I wandered the town for a while, simply walking and drinking in the sights, taking the change to relax without having to sleep. Watched all the ordinary people meander through ordinary lives, wondering whether I felt superiority or envy. Asahina had disappeared off somewhere, but Nagato was apparently waiting in front of the Seaside Library, looking up at the sign as if in trance.

"If I didn't know you better, I would say that look was wistfulness." I called out, smiling platonically. Nagato rolled her head around to face me, the light of the falling sun glinting orange on her glasses.

"We are aware." She replied. I frowned.

"Something wrong?" The Integrated Sentient Data Entity only takes control it when it has something important to say – usually, Nagato is just left to be Nagato.

A shake of a head. "Not in the scheme of things. Merely a distraction. The operation timetable has been advanced. Asakura Ryoko will initiate her mission tomorrow."

"That fast?"

"Miss Suzumiya has made us aware of a complication. The Subject's mental state is merely conditional at current, with signs of potential decline in this future. We are advancing the mission to prevent this being an issue."

I raised an eyebrow. "You think we must introduce the villain as soon as possible."

"Yes. To prevent further complications, the Subject must be made aware of the gravity of this scenario. There is too much reasonable doubt."

"Then do you think we should reveal our natures as well?"

A nod. "That would be advantageous."

I frowned. "You know a demonstration on behalf of the Organisation is subject to random chance?"

"We are aware. If trouble arises, Miss Suzumiya can always be provoked into producing a suitable example."

Provoke Haruhi into materialising Closed Space? My gaze narrowed. "That's _not_ advisable."

"You find such an act distasteful?"

"You don't?" That and it's too hard to control. She can't do it at will, she has to be genuinely annoyed or frustrated. I'd rather not have a demi-god mad at me, thanks.

Nagato pondered. Or looked like she was pondering. Whether this was her or the Data Entity was, as always, impossible to tell. "Personality errors due to conflicting moral protocols are a non-desirable outcome. We will leave your operations to you."

"Thank you." I replied, unsure if I should be. If I understood the technobabble properly, it sounded like the Data Entity didn't want an angry demi-god either. None of us are immortal.

I wonder what would happen if the Data Entity and their precious 'Subject' ever went to war...

"What about Miss Asahina? Can her group organise their own reveal?" Revealing time travel without actually performing it struck me as somewhat hard.

"A non-issue." Nagato replied, looking back to me. "They have been contacted."

"Good."

Silence descended between us, and Nagato turned her attentions back to the sign. I wondered why the Data Entity found it so interesting. A logo of a wave delivering a large book to a beach, done in blues, browns and gold with "Seaside Library" slotted around it. Aiming for modern and falling short at ordinary.

"And the Canopy Domain?" I asked at length.

"Neutralised for now. There should be no interferences for a consequential period."

"Well that's good news." I replied, now honestly thankful.

Nagato nodded with a chilling smile. "We are aware."

A buzz of static, a flicker of visual distortion and Nagato was Nagato again, the Data Entity withdrawing away to do whatever dirty work it needed to do for this farcical 'scenario' of its'. "We will meet again in 33 hours." She stated simply, turning to leave.

* * *

Sunday was dull, passing by in a flutter of paperwork, housework, homework and snoring on the couch. The higher-ups were resolving things at their end without me, and I was glad for the chance to catch up on such merciful things as sleep and schoolwork. Staying in the upper grade boundaries takes effort and time, and most of mine is spent on my job.

Monday started the day warm, hovered indecisively around cool and then finally decided to stick with stiflingly hot by the time I sauntered off down to the clubroom. Nagato was there, as always, whilst Haruhi had cleaning duty and Mikuru was... somewhere else. I don't know. Does it really matter?

Nagato, sticking to role as we were in school, didn't acknowledge my entry. I gave her a nod anyway.

With little else to do, I dumped my bag in a corner and took a seat, head on hands, elbows on table. I waited.

And waited.

Just for the hell of it, I waited some more.

God, in-role Nagato can be _boring_. You almost wish the Data Entity would suddenly pop up just to break the monotony.

Finally, Kyon opened the door. He looked at Nagato, dropped his bag on the table and looked at me.

"Don't tell me you too have something to say to me about Suzumiya?"

What? No 'hello, nice to see you' too?. I smiled back politely. "Ah, judging by your reaction, I guess the other two girls have approached you already."

I glanced over at Nagato. It was a fair bet the Data Entity was listening in. This would be a good time to introduce the Organisation, even if a practical demonstration is impossible to timetable. My superiors haven't suggested anything yet, but... this is a good opportunity.

"Let's find another place to talk. It would be troublesome if Suzumiya-san hears us." I lied smoothly, gesturing him out the door.

* * *

It's about high time I explained my Esper abilities. In truth, they really are that limited; my explanation to Kyon was no lie. Of course, it's more him we're concerned of than Haruhi when it comes to the destruction of worlds, but she _does_ have that ability - it's only with the help of the Integrated Sentient Data Entity that we've been able to largely suppress it. Rather than destroying and reforming worlds, she materialises the Shinjin as a vent for her frustrations - we couldn't stop the world alterations completely, we just managed to... _divert_ it. Now her subconscious has an empty world, the Data Entity's 'Closed Space', to vent it's frustrations upon, rather than this one. It was Haruhi's idea. I think the power to destroy this world scares her. It's understandable; it scares us, too.

Though that bit about me being low-ranked was a lie. Sort of. I'm effectively our main diplomatic link between the Organisation and the Integrated Sentient Data Entity via Nagato, I'm Haruhi's minder and I'm the man-on-the-spot should anything happen to Kyon, seeing as I'm the only Esper within the right age-bracket and with the correct nationality to be around him nearly 24-7. Of course I have a high rank. Having said that, it's almost entirely ceremonial filibuster on my handlers' parts; the rank is merely for show, trying to make it look like they're not using me as much as they're using Haruhi, and even then I still don't get paid much, period. I don't why, it's not like they're open to public inquiry or subject to any laws. In any case, while my position may be one of critical importance to the Organisation, I am nevertheless not one of those who pulls the strings.

Anyway, I should probably get back to the clubroom.

* * *

When I arrived after-school the next day, Kyon was gone, as was Nagato. Asahina was fretting over the kettle whilst Haruhi was inexplicably spinning gleefully in her Commander's chair.

"You look refreshed." I said with a smile as I came in. It's so rare to see her actually being herself, just a slightly eccentric 16 year old girl not involved in risky plots to deceive gods or given a free hand over reality itself whether she wanted it or not, that I honestly couldn't help it.

"Spent the entire day catching up on sleep in class!" She said with an energetic grin, pumping both hands into the air at once and pushing off the desk extra hard in an exemplary display of boundless teenage energy. "Man, it's awesome when all the teachers are Organisation members!"

I frowned, but still couldn't keep myself from smiling. A pleasant smile's a dime a dozen in this business, but a genuine one's worth its weight in gold. "You shouldn't sleep through lessons Haruhi." I chided, feeling vaguely parental for some reason.

Haruhi snorted and rolled her eyes. "Yes, yes, Onii-chan, whatever you say!"

I couldn't help it, I laughed back at that one. Not loudly, just a reserved chuckle, but even so the mirth was there. Compared to Suzumiya and Nagato, my ability to hide my emotions and present others as real leaves much to be desired. For her part, Haruhi's smile only grew wider as the computer chair rocked her back and forth.

"Subject inbound. Appropriate positions required." stated Miss Nagato Yuki from her chair.

Both myself and Haruhi froze. Asahina nearly knocked over her kettle. When did she...

In unison, three heads, mine included, turned to face the door. It looked completely innocuous. Had Nagato simply walked in and taken her seat without any of us noticing? When did that happen!

"I repeat: Subject inbound. Appropriate positions required."

Haruhi choked in her seat. "Oh hell, he still thinks I'm sick! I said I was leaving early! Shit!" With quick, darting movements, she shot out her seat and started viciously cramming her school books into her bag before heading for the exit. "I need to get out here!"

I pulled out my cellphone. "Need a lift?"

"Yes, please."

"A-Ano..." stuttered Miss Asahina, shaking by the window and freezing us just at the door.

"WHAT?" shouted myself and Haruhi in unison, making the queen of tea leaves wilt further.

"T-the courtyard... you can see it from here... if you try to leave, he'll..."

Haruhi ran over to the window and blanched. From that, I guessed that Mikuru was probably right. The former grasped the latter firmly by the shoulders and looked her straight in the eyes. "Mikuru, Itsuki and I need to leave, right now, unnoticed. When Kyon comes in, just... delay him. Keep him out of the club room for a short while, I don't care how. Can you do that for me, Mikuru?"

"E-Eh? But... how?"

Haruhi's arms shot right up into the air.

"How? Does it matter HOW? Just... just use you magnificent feminine wiles or something! I don't care!" She snatched up her bag and made a beeline for the door, latching onto my tie along the way and dragging me along like an unwilling ragdoll out into the corridor.

"Ow! Haruhi, let go!"

She didn't slow down, but at least she did oblige. I loosened my tie gratefully.

"Come on!" she urged. "He doesn't come up this route, he uses the stairs closest to the classroom. We can get out using the service door they use to deliver the art room's supplies!"

Trust Haruhi to have the building layout memorised...

I flicked open my cellphone and hit one of the speed-dial buttons.

"Mori-san!" I gasped into the phone, pushing the device close to my ear whilst trying to keep up with the fastest runner in the school.

"Koizumi-kun?" came my commanding officer's – currently somewhat surprised – voice. "Is there an emergency?"

"We need an exit! Haruhi needs to get home before we blow our cover!"

Muffled cursing ensued on the other side of the line. Had the situation been less hectic, I might have been able to enjoy the once-in-a-lifetime spectacle of Sonou Mori sounding slightly ruffled. "How did- oh, never mind, I'll find out later. Arakawa's on his way, usual cab, usual place!"

"Thanks! Sorry for the short notice!"

I flipped the phone shut again and stuffed it back into one of my pockets, didn't really pay attention to which. Like Olympic runners, we smashed through the art-room doors, darted through the room like school-coloured blurs and pushed our way into the storage room. The storage room was basically a really long, thin room with a door at each end; one to the art room, one to the car park; and a maze of boxes in between. We slalomed and vaulted over and around crates of paint tubs and easels and hauled the door open into the fresh, outdoor air.

Just to ruin the dramatic flow, we discovered our erstwhile driver hadn't arrived yet. Much panting, breath catching, and embarrassed explanations to shell-shocked art students ensued.

I looked up and picked the clubroom window out from the multitude of others patterned on the walls. Mikuru, bless her, had been right. We were right out in the open. I hoped the time-traveller hadn't just locked the door; that would just take even more explaining.

Oh well, no time to dawdle.

We nipped across the carpark as naturally as we could as a taxi cab trundled up. In we went, me in the passenger seat next to Arakawa, Haruhi in the armoured rear compartment, and the car drove off as normal as you please. Haruhi watched the school recede through the tinted bullet-proof glass, clearly watching out in case we were being followed.

This may seem a completely overblown song and dance for something so apparently trivial, but we can't afford any suspicion. We're dealing with a full-blown god here, even if he is unaware of his own nature. There's enough unknown floating around at the best of times; we cant' afford to take chances. And if dear Kyon discovered we'd pretty much been lying to him the entirety of his time here? The results probably wouldn't be pretty. Even so, this charade is better than letting him fall into the hands of the Canopy Domain.

The car left the road and parked in front of a completely ordinary looking single-storey flat just under twice the size of my classroom. Haruhi breathed a sigh of relief when we finally came to a stop, chuckling as I got out and opened the door for her like a chauffeur.

"Ladies first." I said with a killer smile.

Haruhi smirked, not falling for it for a second, and slid out of the car. I shut the as door after her and moved up one to talk to Arakawa as she walked down to the house, rummaging in her pockets for the keys.

"Thanks for the help." I said gratefully.

"Don't mention it." The old man said back. He was still in his business suit; he didn't even have time to change, poor guy. I hope no-one looked too closely at our taxi. "I'm needed back at the mansion. Can you make it back on your own?"

"There's nothing wrong with _actual_ public transport, Arakawa-san." I replied with a smile. Arakawa chuckled and revved the engine, ending the conversation. I stepped back and let him drive off back onto the street. As he speeds away, I wonder what his real name is.

With Haruhi inside and the crisis averted, I was left feeling somewhat silly. I was not needed here; Haruhi was the one in danger of breaking cover, not me – I didn't need to trundle around half the city in a mad panic. If anything, my being missing from the clubroom could raise even more questions. Oops.

"You gonna stand outside there until people start pointing cameras at you?"

Hmm? Oh, it's Haruhi.

"Get inside already." She commanded, leaning against the open doorframe looking a mixture of amused and annoyed. She stepped back, disappearing into the depths of the little flat, which I took as my cue to follow, switching my shoes at the door and following her into the kitchen/dining area.

Before you misinterpret this, I should probably say this here and now; this is not the first time I've been in Haruhi's flat. Point in fact, I'm the one who actually picked out the thing, as Haruhi likes to constantly remind me when the water cuts out every few months. I'm quite familiar with this place, so there's no inherent awkwardness or embarrassment that stereotypically comes with entering a girl's house. Our relationship is quite professional, thank you very much.

Haruhi took off her sailor top, leaving just her shirt and tossed it onto the table, where it landed between a bowl and a box of cereal that had clearly been there since morning. Whilst the floor looked reasonably clean, little piles of dirt could be seen collecting in corners where the broom had missed it, and there was an odd stain on the kitchen side that had always been there as far as I could remember. I couldn't exactly comment myself; as a result of our work with the Organisation, Haruhi spent years being tutored and taught to create the perfect actress or superspy with very little focus on things like keeping clean or Home Economics, while I spent most of my time flitting around between the mansion and Haruhi's flat with precious few moments to spare on things like sleep or keeping my tiny apartment in order. I nearly dropped out of school during that period, that's why they've ordered me to keep my grades up as high as possible from now on. Whilst I no longer have to oversee Haruhi's training, I still have very little free time.

A kettle hissed and steamed, and before long I had a polystyrene cup of coffee handed to me. It was just instant; cheap, pre-ground granules with hot water mixed in, but I drank it anyway. It scalded a bit, but didn't do much else. We never really taught Haruhi to brew coffee either.

An awkward silence hung in the air. It's mostly my fault; I don't actually need to be here. If anything, I could have stayed behind and bought Haruhi time for her example rather than leaving it to the slightly less than reliable Mikuru and Nagato. Whilst Nagato probably would divert Kyon's attention, she probably wouldn't be very subtle about it and I wouldn't be surprised to hear that Mikuru either forgot or just did her usual stellar attempt at failing miserably. I also wouldn't have to explain why I wasn't in the clubroom tomorrow morning. Nor would I have to fork out cash for a cab back...

Oh well. Too late to return to the clubroom now. Can't say I'm sorry, to be honest.

We sipped our coffees silently, each looking at nothing in particular and lost in thought. I finished mine first and tossed the cup into a bin, shortly followed by Haruhi.

More solemn silence. We're good at that.

"Want to go into the lounge?" Haruhi asked finally, gesturing down the hall. I nodded with a pleasant smile (another thing we're good at) and followed her lead.

The lounge was in a worse state than the kitchen, as it didn't have to be kept marginally clean for eating in. A couch, one of those stuffed bean-bag seat things, and a table with a TV set on it took up most of the room, along with a few discarded coats and scarves. Most of the trash was actually discarded paperwork that she didn't need any more but had never gotten around to binning. At first glance, it would like some student bachelor's pad, if it weren't for the expensive wireless phone sets in every room and the telegram machine in a corner.

Haruhi dive-bombed onto the couch, landing sideways in front of the TV with practised ease. I just flopped into the beanbag with a pleasant *flumpf*, pushing an old coat out of the way. Haruhi sighed contently. I have to admit, for all the clutter that couch did look comfortable. She noticed that look with a grin, bunching up and patting the newly made gap with one hand.

"Come on, don't be a stranger!"

"No thanks."

"Hmph."

We slipped back into silence again. Haruhi picked at bits of loose stuffing, whilst I plucked out some of the crushed sea of paperwork milling around me. They were telegrams (harder to trace than emails or text messages), saying things like:

--DETAILED PSYCHOGRAPH REQUIRED BY NEXT MONTH.--

--CONTACT AGENT GLASGOW (That's Mori-san, by the way) 3RD MONDAY.--

--BRING 2ND GOD SAT MEETING.--

That last one was referring to the Saturday meeting earlier in the week. We normally hold them every week, but that was the first time we invited the '2nd God' (Organisation slang for Kyon) to come. Haruhi'd sprung that one on us Sunday - I _knew_ that wasn't her idea.

"How have the acting courses with Kanzaki-sensei been going?" I asked idly.

Haruhi nodded. "Pretty good. Got tsunderes down pat."

"Damn straight." I replied seriously.

I dodged the polystyrene cup sent at my head with practised ease.

The conversation, now that it was born, meandered easily into a minor rant about Mori's deadlines from Haruhi with a few comments of my own tossed in for the hell of it. We talked for several hours, each taking a break from our daily lives, but it was always work. I guess it should be somewhat depressing that that's only thing we can talk about, but then it's always been like that. I guess that's all we really are any more. Ah well, it stopped bothering me years ago.

* * *

The following morning was innocuous. Apparently Kyon had suggested Haruhi should try and have a normal life; it took me five minutes to stop her from spontaneously laughing when we met in the clubroom at lunch. Nothing against Kyon, but is it his fault we're in this situation, even if it's his subconscious that keeps giving reality wedgies. For _him_ to tell us to settle down and life normal lives _is_ amusing, in a darkly ironic 'why are we even here?' sort of way. I was walking back to my classroom, taking the outdoor route for a change of scenery and a bit of fresh air, when I was intercepted by Emiri Kimidori and her pleasant smile.

"Kimidori-san, we meet again!" I greeted cheerfully.

She smiled. "You have introduced your side?"

"Yes, yesterday afternoon."

"Good. The time-travellers have introduced theirs. The letter has been placed. We are preparing to introduce the opposition. All Interfaces are in position; we will begin at 1530 hours. Please refrain from entering the 1-5 classroom until the operation is complete."

I nodded. "Understood."

She bowed. "Then I really must be going."

* * *

End of day. Normal life over, Work begins. School and the façade of a normal life had been pretty boring, to be blunt, but now that was about to change. As soon as the bell went, to two of us headed straight for the roof and the open air. We had the best seats in the house, even if we had to wait for a few hours before the show began.

This is big enough to count as a mission. As such, I'm carrying. I hope that gives an adequate idea of how serious this is.

The tension on the roof was palpable. Even nature was adding to the scene, supplying us with plenty of freezing winds and setting our hair fluttering dramatically. Beneath the orangey-reds of a setting sun, Haruhi and I stood huddled in our coats, standing behind Emiri Kimidori standing in front of a jigsaw puzzle of broken glass frames, each one displaying the 1-5 classroom from every angle in what looked like a reflection but really wasn't. The classroom was deserted save for one pupil standing patiently by the blackboard. That wouldn't last long.

The door opened. 9 screens watched Subject Kyon enter with a look of surprise.

We watched as Emiri and Asakura smiled at exactly the same time. "Operation commenced."

* * *

Kyon seemed to be taking it rather well, all things concerned. There's a difference between telling and showing, after all. Tell someone something absurd like "I'm an alien!" or "Gods exist! (And you're one of them!)" and the most they can ever do is nod their head and believe you. Such beliefs are, naturally, open to doubt; after all, it _is_ nonsense from a logical point of view, and Kyon is a very logical person. So we have to show him. Prove it, beyond a measure of a doubt that we really aren't screwing around here.

Except, of course, we really are. With any luck though, the events will seem so out-there and beyond his carefully structured sense of reality (which his subconscious is secretly trying to break down... guess he's not _that_ logical a person) he won't look any further. Won't try to peer through the cracks. Especially if Asakura does her job correctly and makes pulling the strings to unravel the threads look a very dangerous prospect indeed.

Speaking of Asakura, she's doing a stellar job. I suppose it's to be expected from their kind; no human weaknesses like myself or Asahina. For all her objections, she's playing her role perfectly, just the right amount of dramatic tension, just creating the appearance of danger; not actually steamrolling him in milliseconds like she's capable of, but not making it look like she's playing with him at the same time. The IDSE's precious 'Subject' has taken it hook, line and sinker. Which is good.

If he didn't we'd be in serious trouble right about now.

Speaking of which, isn't violently provoking a subconscious god a really bad idea?!

And... yep, here's Nagato, charging in like a miniature Knight in shining school-uniform armour that's just missing a horse to complete the look. Words are said, mostly technobabble, stuff Kyon won't understand... which is good, because she's just getting Asakura to give her an update on the situation. Then, they're back into role. I wonder if Nagato or the Data Entity understands the concept of Badass.

Haruhi was nodding. "He's fallen for it. I think you can consider your operation a success, Emiri-san."

This better be worth the risk...

Emiri smiled her perfect smile. On the glass shards floating around as our multi-faceted television screen the two actors danced their pre-choreographed dance with precision. It was hard not to get drawn in and start silently cheering for Nagato and she caught knives and took multiple spears of iron to the chest without so much as a stumble. Kyon, the one person who didn't have a clue what was going on, looked terrified enough for both their lives. Let it not be said reality TV is boring.

Then the screens cut out suddenly. I took that as a cue that Something Went Wrong.

Emiri actually blinked. Then her hands started moving at inhuman speeds, a forest of holographic keyboards being conjured around her. I was about to ask what was wrong when my cellphone went off, shortly followed by Haruhi's. We fumbled around for them for several seconds in a panic as streams of data began to swirl around the green-haired Interface in front of us.

"Koizumi-kun?!"

"Mori-san?"

"Emergency!"

Sonou Mori was panicking.

* * *

We rushed down the stairs as fast as we could, taking them four of five at a time and leaving Kimidori doing whatever she was doing on the roof. When we tried to move her, she just muttered some gibberish about 'Established Ports' and 'Static Co-ordinators'. I guessed that meant whatever she was doing wasn't something mobile. Meanwhile, I was getting the decidedly unpleasant once-in-a-lifetime experience of Sonou Mori starting to panic. Fortunately, she was a professional first and foremost and she was keeping it under control, but I could tell from the waver in her voice that she was far from calm.

"What's going on?" I asked hurriedly.

"We're not sure. We just lost contact with all our sentries on the East wing!"

"_All_ of them?"

"Yes! All of them! Simultaneously! Gods, I was _talking_ to one of them when-"

"Mori-san!"

"...sorry. Look, we have no idea what's going on. Get Suzumiya out of there. _Now._"

I looked over at Haruhi, whispering into her own phone and growing gradually paler with every passing second. She looked up for a second and our eyes connected.

"No need to tell me twice." I told Mori grimly.

* * *

"Is Arakawa on his way?"

"Yes. ETA ten minutes. Watch over her until then."

"Understood."

Mori hung up before I did. I imagine she had plenty to deal with besides me. I slid the phone back in my pocket and caught up with Haruhi at the base of the stairs. We were on the first floor of the art building, and the East Wing was on the other side of the school. Arakawa wouldn't be arriving for some time; we'd need to hide somewhere. Specifically, we needed somewhere to hide _her._

And where was the most secure room in this entire building? Why, the SOS clubroom, of course.

"Follow me!" I gestured to Haruhi. She did shakily. Empty schools are creepy little things. When a place you spend most of your life in goes from bright, well-lit and sunny, filled with people, noise, chatter and the smell of cooking from the kitchens all the way to a fiery sunset orange lighting, empty, lights off, smelling of the sterile cleaning fluids from the caretakers and also haunted by something capable of taking out an entire squad of Organisation sentries, with all their sensory equipment and automatic weapons, it can come across as a little creepy.

I slid out my handgun, a British-made Welrod silenced, basically an ugly long tube with a grip and trigger at one end, and lead the way with it outstretched in a two-handed stance, covering corners and sweeping corridors just like Arakawa taught me, whilst Haruhi stayed at my back and watched the rear, just like Arakawa had taught her. We never bothered giving Haruhi a gun. She's a demigod; we figured she wouldn't need one.

The silenced pistol probably wouldn't do any good at all if our attackers were who I suspected they were, but it made me feel better, so I guess it's useful for that at least. Our only bit of luck is that this is after school. There shouldn't be anyone around that's not part of the Organisation. In other words, if someone sees us like this, there won't be any awkward questions. Or at least none we can't answer, at any rate.

We reached the clubroom in good time (it wasn't far), the corridors empty and deserted along the route, an eerie silence hanging on the air. I felt that even with my silencer, I'd be heard a mile off if I fired. Luckily, the rest of the Organisation had the same idea we did; when we got there, the clubroom was already secured. Haruhi's homeroom teacher ran over, huffing with a Minebea PM-9 clutched to his chest.

"Suzumiya-san! Koizumi-kun! In here, quickly!"

We nodded collectively and Haruhi darted through the door without a word. Positioned both inside and around the room almost the entire faculty of North High lay in wait, armed with anything and everything we had, from the fairly common Minebeas and SIG-P220s all the way to a Type 89 and even a LAM. None of these people were trained military specialists, just the original teachers of the school the Organisation had, like almost all of its personnel, co-opted and pressed into service as its needs required. The thought was so thick in the air I didn't even have to say it: the SOS clubroom was our Alamo. Never before had the Brigade's initials seemed more appropriate. We pressed Haruhi down beneath the Commander's desk and covered all the entrances with all the guns we could muster.

One of the secretaries handed me a hands-free set, and I slid into my ear. It was connected to the Organisation's Ground Defence Forces' command net, and that was going haywire, a multitude of conflicted voices and callings overlapping and trying to report in, but the most disturbing part was easily the static. One by one, the voices were dropping out into noisy silence.

"We've got hostiles in room 2-fzzzzzzzt!"

"Incoming in th-ffzzzzzzzzzzt!"

"It's the Sk-fwheaeeeeeeeee!"

After a few seconds, the headset fell silent.

"Who's guarding Second?" I asked into the oppressive silence.

"He's got two Interfaces with him." Someone whispered back. "He'll be fine." _And we won't._ I thought back to Emiri on the roof, and wondered how or what she was doing. Surely the Data Entity couldn't be sitting around doing nothing at a time like this!

At this point, a shard of glass dropped through the ceiling. None of saw it appear, it just fell down to hang in mid-air all of a sudden. Specifically, in front of me. The rest of the team gasped and readied their weapons, but Haruhi and I managed to stop them before the fragile fragment was blasted into smithereens.

Emiri's angelic face appeared in the glass and gave us a brief nod of thanks, the most emotion I've ever seen from her besides pleasant smiling, before the view switched to the shoe lockers in the foyer. A boy with dark green-gray hair was switching his shoes and humming a stupid song.

Haruhi blinked. "_Taniguchi?!_"

I was more professional. I just swore instead.

"What's that idiot doing here!?"

"He must have forgotten something..." Haruhi whispered with mounting dread.

"I can get him." Suzumiya's homeroom teacher said, fingering the Minebea nervously.

I shook my head. "An authority figure would arouse suspicion."

Given that this entire room is full of what the unlucky first year would consider 'Authority Figures', that left two people here who could go and divert him, and only one expendable enough to do so during a crisis like this. "I'll go." I stated simply. Haruhi gave me a pleading look and shook her head; I just smiled my trademark smile.

It'll be nice to be a hero for once.

* * *

I moved down the maze of corridors and quickly and quietly as I could. I couldn't even have the Welrod out; I was going to find an innocent classmate, who wasn't up in his neck in this insanity and would be be more scared of me if he saw me waving a gun around than we would about the things he _should_ be afraid of. The whole point was to keep him from discovering the truth of this world, to keep him in his shell of innocence, and ensure he stayed good and (comparatively) pure.

No, wait, that's the _official _mission statement: the one we're feeding Haruhi so she doesn't think we're _too_ heartless. What Mori was whispering into my ear was quite different.

"Koizumi-kun, understand?" She said, voice distorted slightly from the hands-free set in my ear.

"Yes Ma'am." I replied crisply, squirrelling away the Welrod back into its hidden holster in the back of my blazer as I ran.

"We can't afford any losses, and that's one of Second's classmates. If a second one goes missing, hell, if _anyone_ here goes missing along with the Ryouko Interface, we're screwed."

"Yes Ma'am."

"So get him out of there. Try to avoid breaking his little world, but feel free to render him unconscious and dump in the toilets if you have to."

"Yes Ma'am..."

"We have to make sure the Second suspects nothing. Saving this idiot's life isn't even an objective. Damn it, if we still had the sentries..."

The was some muttered fumblings through the earpiece, then Mori switched channels to talk to everyone.

"Listen up! I'm issuing a hold fire order!"

An understandable outcry of protests came from Haruhi's motley band of defenders.

"Look, I don't care!" Mori shouted back. "All guns are to be saftied and muzzled, especially that damn LAM! They'll be able to them hear them from bloody everywhere! This is a _public_ school in the middle of a **public** town, if the locals hear gunfire, it's not the sort of thing we can easily explain away! If it's silenced, fine, fire away, but if not, we're operating as weapons_ closed._ If one of those bastards reach you, delay it however you can and get Suzumiya out of there!"

I thought of the Welrod at my back. One of the few people lucky enough to have a _chance_ of defending themselves and I can't even use the damn thing. Talk about ironic.

"Oh, and those who work with the Second's class, if you could also avoid dying, that would be helpful." Mori added. I couldn't be certain, but I could swear she sounded bitter. "If you die, we can't cover it up as easily."

* * *

I'll say this now before it leads to misunderstandings late: Sonou Mori isn't a bad person. She's just a bit new, that's all. It doesn't matter how tough you are, how many bodies you've stepped over or how many people you've had to sent to their deaths, the first encounter with **them** will always screw you up. She actually reacts to pressure quite well; this is just a lot more than usual, by several magnitudes, and with a cosmic horror tossed in as well. It's enough to make anyone unbalanced. I still have nightmares about mine. **It** wasn't even doing anything threatening or violent, just turned and looked at me in the middle of a crowd, but those eyes will haunt me everywhere.

Figured out what I'm talking about yet? If not, don't worry. You'll find out soon.

* * *

Somewhere during the hunt, one of Emiri's shards appeared. It was a thin, dagger-like sliver, probably unusable as a screen, but it darted around through the air and led the way as I chased after it. I found our errant schoolboy quickly after that. The shard flew straight into my pocket next to the Welrod the instant I turned the corner. The kid looked up at me with surprise, before breaking into a cheerful smile.

"Yo! You're that... erm, what'shisnameagain... Koizuki! You're that Koizuki guy who hung out with Suzumiya!"

"Er, yes. I am. Can't say I'm familiar with your name though?"

"Ah, me? I'm Taniguchi! Pleased to meetcha!"

Hands were outstretched, hands were shook. Hands were returned to their sides and smiles exchanged.

"Yo, you missin' somethin' too?"

"Hmm?"

"I left my bag in the classroom by accident. Can't believe it, just left it there like some dumbass... you?"

"Afterschool activities." I replied neutrally.

"Ah, don't let me keep ya then!"

I cursed under my breath as the grey-haired boy turned to leave.

"I think I'll go with you, Taniguchi-san."

"Eh? But you said-"

I smiled my trademark smile. "Afterschool activities halted some time ago. I too need to recover my 'stuff'."

"Aaah!" The boy beamed with growing understanding. Walking alongside him with the orange sunset shining in through the windows felt so unreal I was expecting something violent to come in and smash through the illusion at any moment. I had to stuff my hands into my pockets to keep him from noticing.

The corridors were walking down seemed familiar for some reason.

"Taniguchi-san?"

"Yeah?"

"Where are we going?"

The kid laughed. "To my classroom of course!"

"Your classroom being?"

"1-5."

"Hmm. I see."

...

"...What? Hey, what's so funny?"

"Nothing Taniguchi-san, nothing at all."

* * *

"Hey, 's that..."

"Is that what?"

"A hands-free!?"

"...Yes."

"Wow! Where'd you get that! I heard they cost a ton!"

"...I was given it."

"Oh man, you're so lucky! You gotta tell me how you got hold of that!"

"Maybe later."

* * *

"...so then _Kyon _says, 'Hey, don't say things that'll create a misunderstanding!', and me and Kuni are all like, 'Yeah, _right!_' Hahaha! You know what I mean, don'tcha?"

"Crystal."

"What? Where?"

"No, I meant... oh never mind."

"...huh. So, anyway, after that it's gym, and gym is like, AWESOME. All the girls are in those _tiny_ short-things, and they've all got such big breasts! Gym is the best!"

"I'm happy for you."

"Haha! Cheers, man!"

* * *

"Hey, 's that-"

"Probably not."

"-a girl?"

"...huh?"

I turned to where Taniguchi was looking and froze.

Taniguchi meanwhile, had lowered down to crouch at eye level with the glassy-eyed girl standing before us in the middle of the corridor. "Hey there chibi!"

"_____"

"Hey, you ain't lost, are ya?"

"Taniguchi..." I warned, reaching around my back like a man edging away from a landmine.

"Huh? Isn't that a Youkoen uniform? What're ya doin' in a dump like this?"

"_____"

"Taniguchi!" I repeated.

"Huh? Koizuki?"

"She's probably lost and scared and wandered in here by mistake." I explained gently, smiling all the while. "You go and see if her parents are around here or something. I can lead her out."

"You sure, dude?"

The glassy eyes stared into mine. I nodded, praying she wouldn't start talking. "Quite sure."

"Hmph. Well, okay. See ya later!"

"I'll look forward to it!"

"Haha! Bye!"

Taniguchi disappeared around a corner. The next moment, I'd jumped back several feet and had my Welrod out and aimed directly at Kuyoh's forehead. Because it _was_ Kuyoh, standing there with her massive mop of hair and disconnected eyes. I looked down gunsights that looked down at her diminutive face that looked blankly back at mine. I began to wonder if she'd even heard of a gun before. As far as pistols go, the Welrod doesn't particularly look like one. Trigger-on-stick and all.

"_____"

"You took out the sentries, didn't you?"

"___that was___ another________________me." Kuyoh replied, lips moving erratically out of tune with her dead voice.

"...there's more than one?"

"__we are________one."

"...why are you doing this?"

"____i ask___the______same of___________you."

"What?"

Canopy Interfaces never make any damn sense.

I shook my head. This was getting nowhere. I tensed my finger on the trigger. If I had any chance at all, it would be with this.

"that won't work." Kuyoh stated confidently.

Huh, that was odd, it was almost coherent.

...why do I get the feeling she's said those words a thousand times before?

Suddenly I was airborne. One second, standing firm and secure, the next, not standing on anything at all, propelled backwards through the air by incredible force. Shards of glass dug into my back and arms, and the Welrod flew out of my grip, now just a crumpled hunk of metal before I landed on something hard and gravelly, tumbling and rolling, the rough stones tearing and ripping skin and fabric before I finally slammed into a post. The whole world was a dark, painful blur. The skin on my exposed arms and knees felt raw and bloody and my back was in agony.

Through all this, I could still see Kuyoh, standing at the window with that same glassy stare. She hadn't so much as blinked.

She didn't climb through the window. She didn't just break the wall down to get through, or even just walk straight through it ghost-style. She was simply behind it one second, in front of it the next, suspended by invisible doll strings in mid air. I have no idea if she teleported or passed through faster than the eye could see, but there she was.

She dropped down to earth without a sound.

Kuyoh watched me. If I had to guess, I'd say she was curious. Not that she ever shows any emotion at all. She started to walk towards me; I was too injured to back away. She approached, those empty glass eyes digging into mine.

In my peripheral vision, the sea of broken glass twitched.

Kuyoh had enough time to look up before being speared by a thousand shards of glass. There were so many, one of her arms fell off, dropping limply to the floor silently. A torrent of sliced hair turned the ground into a miniature carpet.

In the shadow of the building, it was too dark to see if Kuyoh could bleed. She certainly didn't as much as blink. If anything, she looked confused. Her head rolled down to look at her severed stump of an arm, and I realised that five pane-sized pieces had also cut into her head like a bloody pincushion. One of her glassy eyes was dissected neatly in two, the two halves sliding in opposite directions, and still she didn't register any emotion at all.

I never really doubted it before after all my contact with Nagato and the other Interfaces, but it was this moment, when Kuyoh stood there impaled in a thousand ways that would have pulverised organs, torn skin and ripped out eyes and limbs and the only notice she took of it was mild curiosity, that really hit it home for me.

These things are in no way human. They may look human, and some of them may even act human, but they are in no way related to us. Ever. Period. In any sense of the word.

Another glass shard slid out from behind my back. It was small and thin, like a dagger and far too small to act as a screen. It drifted serenely into the full of my vision, eclipsing the gory sight of Kuyoh Suou, catching my attention as surely as a fish in a net before pointing away and raising itself into the air.

I followed, raising to my feet with my attention focused purely on the floating shard, watching as the lights of the setting sun played along its length, the light playing, reflecting and refracting off along all the cracks and roughs. It drifted away, and I followed. I don't know why, but for those precious seconds, the only things that existed was myself and that shard. My only thought was to follow. In hindsight, my previous injuries should have made that impossible; I can only surmise that that was Emiri's doing. It's probably a good thing I was so focused on the shard - if I wasn't, I might have heard the sounds of Kuyoh Suou being torn apart from the head down by the green haired Interface's glass army. I found out about that afterwards, watching the feed of a CCTV camera mounted on the corner of the gym storage building. It was grainy and distance blurred the details, but the sight still haunts me. At least it didn't have sound. I don't even want to _imagine_ what that must have sounded like.

Anyway, I'm getting distracted. After a few minutes, the magic that kept my attention away from my wounds and stopped me collapsing into an undignified heap gave way, and my attention snapped right back to a world of pain as a I collapsed into an undignified heap.

Haruhi screamed, and my homeroom teacher and a secretary dragged me back into the clubroom. I was laid on a table, face down, a laptop and a black triangle swept aside to make room as the school nurse hurried over. The glass shard settled comfortably on the wooden surface next to me, and the impression of a pleasant smile pressed into my thought processes.

That's as far as my memory goes; after that I passed out completely and lost track of everything that happened next. Sorry.

* * *

End of Chapter One


	2. 02: Distance

**Parallel Running**  
_A Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya fanfiction  
MrCJ/Guessmyname_

_Please don't sue_

* * *

**Chapter Two  
_Distance_**

* * *

It's never a good sign when you wake up in a room you don't remember entering. It's even worse if you can still recognise the room.

Especially this one. I know this one very well. As I should too: given that it always appears after some disastrous and highly painful event, the sight of the Mansion's private hospital's prefab ceiling tiles has since been permanently seared straight into my memory.

They say familiarity makes the heart grow fonder. Those people are wrong.

"Um... I don't think that's how the saying goes..."

I blinked and the world refocused. Haruhi Suzumiya, still in uniform, appeared before me. As dramatic luck would require it, the harsh lights of the hospital that Haruhi's head was eclipsing made it impossible to read her expression. Given the scruffiness of the uniform and vague sense of smoke even I could detect in my less-than-aware state, I could tell that was the same uniform from earlier. Ah well, even if she is a bit worn, at least she's alive.

"Evenin'" I greeted nonchalantly.

"Morning actually." She replied with the hint of a smile.

This isn't the first time we've met each other in this hospital room. We got past the crying hysterics stage a while ago.

"If I try to get up, will I be met with intense pain?"

"No idea."

"Hmph. Thanks for the prognosis, doctor."

Haruhi leaned back to give me room to sit up. Surprisingly, it didn't hurt. The only thing I felt was the slight tug of an IV tube in my arm. No headaches, my arms felt fine, my back was in working order... everything's okay?

"107 glass shards and 521 pieces of gravel and pulverised stone of varying sizes were removed from your person at 2112 hours." said a pleasant voice at the other side of my bed. I turned my head to find Kimidori sitting calmly, an open book on her lap and a kind smile on her face. "Reconstructive surgery and advanced medical data manipulation commenced at 2153 hours. It was completed at 2201 hours. Mental recovery encompassed the remaining time between then and now."

"And when is now?" I asked, feeling vaguely cautious.

"0421 hours, 22 minutes, 4.52 seconds." Kimidori stated calmly. I breathed a sigh of relief; it's long before school starts.

Oddly, the thought of going to school and lazing around in my student persona really appealed to me for some reason. I turned to Haruhi with an honest smile. "You guys stayed up for me? I'm honoured."

Haruhi smiled back wryly. "Emiri woke me."

I turned to Kimidori.

"I don't sleep." The Interface replied motherly.

Hmph. I should be so lucky.

Emiri removed the IV tube with a slight tug and examined it curiously before hanging it back on the stand. I checked to make sure I was actually wearing something (in this case, a nondescript light-blue hospital gown) before swinging my legs over and pushing out of bed. It's not the first time I've made that mistake. Haruhi still likes to bring that up with Arakawa and the others when she feels like embarrassing me.

Outside was pitch black, the bright lights of the Mansion's inside ruining my night vision completely, hiding all the ornamental gardens from view and making it look like the only thing outside the window was the void. The 'hospital' room – basically an old dining hall repurposed into a makeshift recovery ward with the additions of some beds, a few curtains and a rewired ceiling – was deserted save for us three. Haruhi lead us out and through the various corridors at an easy pace, whilst Kimidori walked at my side.

"The operation was a success." She stated sweetly. "Miss Ryouko is now in Canada, working alongside the Organisation members there. The Subject was not harmed and the Sky Canopy Domain failed to make First Contact."

"And casualties?"

Emiri's smile didn't waver a millisecond. "43 members of the Organisation Perimeter Guarding Force were lost. Corpse Analysis proves attempted mental bridging by foreign Interfaces."

I raised an eyebrow. "What happened?"

"They failed." Kimidori stated simply.

I sighed. Arakawa was going to be pissed. "And Kuyoh?" I asked, already suspecting the answer.

"That copy was destroyed, as were two others. There are now 5 remaining Kuyoh models active, according to known sightings and the latest intelligence reports."

"And you destroyed them? Yourself?"

"Yes," she replied, pleased, "although my physical component was heavily damaged in the process. You are now talking to Kimidori III."

"...ah." Should I offer my condolences?

"Asakura Ryouko was able to join the engagement after her role was completed. She held the Clubroom until 1721 when the enemy abandoned it's Operation."

Hmm. I'll have to send her a postcard.

Kimidori smiled. "I think she'd like that."

The Mansion was quiet, as could be expected at this hour. The rooms were deserted and empty, though still lit, giving the entire scene a weirdly dreamlike quality. Eventually, we reached the Conference Room on the third floor. Haruhi stepped aside to let me pass - the higher ups try to avoid dealing with her in person where they can help it - whilst Emiri and I entered.

The room was dark. It was a private study once, and now was even more cramped with the addition of five more desks crammed into the tight spaces. Whoever'd set it up originally had a fondness for candlelight and never bothered to actually wire in any lighting, so the room had to be lit by a eclectic army of lamps and reading lights, set on the desk maze and pointed at the ceiling to avoid glaring into someone's face. Why on earth we chose this room is beyond me, though Mori once said it was apparently the most secure room in the house. I suspect the Mansion's actual owners just wanted us out of the way.

Speaking of Mori, she was there, along with Arakawa, the Kasagis and the Tamaru brothers. The rest of our on-high commanders weren't present for whatever reason – probably the time – so Emiri and I were able to choose our seats with ease. I took a seat near Arakawa and opposite Mori next to a red flexi-lamp. Kimidori somehow ended up alongside the Tamaru's, illuminated by a hello kitty light I guessed was originally the possession of the Mansion family's lone female scion.

"Ms Asahina isn't here?" I questioned. Titles are our way of differentiating between Mikuru's differential temporal clones: 'Miss' is the younger sempai, 'Ms' the older and more enigmatic woman we met first. In any case, you can usually expect Ms to be in on Organisation meetings, along with either Kimidori or Ryouko, though now the latter is no longer here, I suppose the job will be taken up by Nagato too.

Mori shook her head, looking grateful. "No. She's setting up her own reveal."

"The time travellers agreed to pitch in at last, did they?"

Mori nodded, giving Kimidori an uneasy look. Kimidori gave her a smile.

Arakawa, lit by a pair of flowery household lamps, cleared his throat. "Now that their spy is no longer here," - Kimidori smiled again - "we can get onto the more important business of today..."

"...The Sky Canopy Domain." finished Mrs Kasagi, resting her chin on crossed hands and looking ominous beneath the yellow glow of a false candle. It suddenly occurred to me that not only did we not have a full complement, we had no-one from the Social or Humanics departments. Besides myself, Mori and Emiri, the people collected here composed the entire upper command structure for the Military wing, with the Tamarus standing in for Intel.

Kasagi's husband nodded. "Recent losses amongst the Guard and SRU forces are getting hard to maintain; we can't easily replace lost personnel."

Arakawa grumbled. "Just so. Even if more people 'awaken', we may not find them for a long time, and it's extremely unlikely they will have prior military experience."

"You were able to train us." Keichii Tamaru noted.

"And him." Added his younger brother Yutaka, with a nod to me.

"Yes, but you were all brought in at the beginning." The fake cabbie rejoined, "We've had time to train you. There's a difference between teaching people to shoot guns and teaching them to be _soldiers._"

"What are you proposing, Arakawa-san?" Mori deadpanned, trying to bring the meeting to order.

Arakawa shrugged. "We need more personnel, pure and simple. We lost three instructors last night, not to mention four full squads. We're no army, Sonou."

If Mori was irritated by the use of her first name, she didn't show it because she was too busy being angry over everything else. "I am aware of that! The Guard was only intended to keep a watch out for returning students so that the faculty could divert them, I never expected them to try and fight Canopy Interfaces!"

"You expected the faculty to." I noted idly.

"That was an emergency!" Mori countered angrily.

"Mori, please." Mrs Kasagi pleaded, before clearing her throat. "Now, I know this a somewhat... contentious issue," she looked at the Tamaru brothers, who narrowed their gazes back, "but I seriously think in this situation, we will have to turn to the government."

The effect was immediate. Her husband nodded patiently, whilst Mori sighed and rubbed her temples, probably having expected this to come up. I wonder how many of us here have actually slept yet. Arakawa and Keichii went red in the face with anger. Yutaka just rolled his eyes.

"Turn to the government? Preposterous!"

"I've told you this before Shizuka! Governments wax and wane, we can't trust them!"

"Who's to say they'll even believe us in the first place, hmm?"

Shizuka Kasagi fumed in retort. "Well where else can we turn?! You said it yourself, Arakawa! We've lost just under half our entire Guards force! We've been severely weakened; we can't just sit on our hands because we've got too much DAMN PRIDE to _ASK_ for help?!"

"Please be calm, Mrs Kasagi." Kimidori said sweetly. "We are aware of your loss."

The entire room stiffened up when they realised the Data Entity itself was sitting in on the conversation. I wish Haruhi was here to see it; we're both used to it, and she'd probably have seen the sight as comical. Even the Tamarus were edging away slightly. The Entity hadn't done the static-shift that usually gave away its entrance, and I realised that I'd been talking to it all morning. That thought was somewhat sobering, so I refrained from smiling at my colleague's discomfort.

"Further Interfaces are being constructed." The Interface / Entity continued, bowing her head and smiling to herself serenely. "As a mark of our alliance and trust, we intend to have them join your forces within a few weeks." She raised her head suddenly and looked Mori right in the eye, making the older woman flinch. "They will be under your command, Mori-san. Please, treat them well, ne?"

Mori flustered. "Er, y-yes! Yes, thank you! I'm sure they'll be of great help."

Kimidori smiled again, nodding. "Just so. If the Canopy Domain makes another move against your Organisation, you will have at least some level of defence."

Arakawa grinned. I found out later that he'd seen the recordings of the fights between the Data Entity and Canopy Domain Interfaces. The Canopies liked to Close off areas before attacking; Kimidori kept taking them by surprise by attacking them in normal space with the glass, whilst Asakura simply took advantage of it to use practically every weapon in the faculty's armoury now that sound couldn't escape and alert anyone outside. The Data Entity Interfaces outclassed the Domain's despite their superior numbers, and I could see the idea of finally being able to effectively fight back against the Canopy's cohorts was appealing to him. Kimidori / the Data Entity flashed me a knowing look, and I suddenly realised why it had placed it's subordinates specifically under _Mori'_s command rather than the Organisation as a whole. The male half of the Kasagis also seemed to notice, if his sudden bout of clamped-down chuckling was anything to go by.

"Something to say, Kanzaki?" Arakawa growled.

The redhead raised his hand in a politely defensive gesture, still chuckling with a weak smile that suddenly reminded me of me for a moment. "Not at all, sir. I just hope we have a good time working alongside our esteemed allies."

"Hmph."

Arakawa may have missed the particulars of the Kasagi's wording, but the Data Entity didn't. Given that its response was just to let Emiri smile again, I doubt anyone else noticed. Let it not be said that the robot has no sense of humour. In any case, his reply seemed to calm the driver, and the elder man backed down.

"In any case, shall we move on?" Kanzaki Kasagi continued raising his hands in a neutral gesture and smiling ambiguously, "Otherwise we're wasting poor Koizumi-kun's time here. The boy needs rest after all."

Mori nodded, and suddenly all eyes turned to me, reminding me that I was still in nothing but a loose hospital gown. I tried not to flush. Keichii's wry smirk indicated the futility of that.

"Koizumi-kun?" Mori began.

"Yes, Mori-san?"

"Now that we've lost a majority of the Guards, we'll need you to take a more proactive bodyguarding role."

I raised an eyebrow at this. The Canopy wouldn't have any compulsions about killing _me_, what was so good about this idea? I am well aware of the abilities of a human compared to that of an Interface; they'd just step over my dead body in a heart-beat, it's not like I'd even slow them down...

Mori shrugged. "It's only temporary; once the new Interfaces arrive, we'll be able to pick up the slack, but for now the onerous is on you."

Joy.

She gave a humourless smile. "Quite. Even so, watch out for anything strange. Miss Yuki and Kimidori will help you in this task..." Mori looked to Emiri, who nodded in confirmation, "so you won't be fighting alone. Haruhi can _probably_ be relied on to look after herself, more or less, so focus on Kyon, as he's unaware." And with any luck, will never be anything other than that. Judging from how Mori was apparently 'ordering' the Data Entity as well, I surmised that this part of the meeting had already been agreed on by the two leaders.

The logic of keeping an eye on Kyon was sound. Whilst theoretically more powerful than Haruhi (and before you ask, I have no idea how they measure it either) he has no idea who/what he is. Haruhi, meanwhile, is, though we deliberately avoided making her use her powers on a concious level, partly to help maintain her cover and also to prevent the Organisation getting god-moded by an angsty thirteen year old way back when. As such, I accepted my 'new' assignment with a nod. Mori smiled. "It really is temporary, no more than a week I should think. In all probability the Canopy Domain is as busy licking it's wounds as we are."

The Kasagis and the Tamarus frowned at that one. "I wouldn't be so sure." Keichii warned, "You know the rate it can build those psychotic bastards is nothing short of _insane_."

"Even so, five in a week? I doubt that."

"The Kuyoh Suou model is not the only one in the Sky Canopy Domain's forces." Emiri interjected kindly. "There are other, less sophisticated models in existence. The Canopy would not hesitate to use them if it saw the need."

"But they _are_ less sophisticated, yes?" Sonou asked, focusing on the Interface/Data Entity before her.

Kimidori nodded. "Yes, by comparison. The Kuyoh Suou design requires a vastly more superior processor and reality matrix to achieve social function. The earlier models are purely combat based, and have no such complex programming; their focus is only on one task."

One of these days, someone's going to have to explain to the Entity the concept of tact. Fortunately, it seemed to notice its mistake, and waved Emiri's hands to calm the others down.

"Do not worry!" she amended sweetly. "It is highly unlikely the Beta Series will be deployed. They are... indiscriminate, and the Domain has so far shown no intention of making its existence known to the Subject. In all probability, they will never be used against you in urban areas."

Mori raised an eyebrow. "And if we're _not _in the cities?"

Emiri smiled.

"You make it sound like some sort of guerilla war..." Arakawa muttered darkly.

"Yes!" Emiri nodded cheerfully, glad that everyone understood so clearly.

* * *

Since my part in the meeting was concluded shortly after (we just had to iron out a few more details in the 'battle plan', nothing too interesting), I was allowed to go back to bed in preparation for tomorrow / later today. Kimidori stayed behind since she was hosting the ISDE and was therefore needed, but I met Haruhi waiting outside, napping on a bench with a maths textbook for a pillow. Given that a) she fell asleep waiting for me and b) she'd be pissed off if I left her there to wake up in the morning, I gently shook her shoulder and ignored the glare I received when she opened her eyes.

"Good morning!" I said chirpily.

"It's still around 4:30 isn't it?"

"How can you tell?"

"You're still in your surgery gown."

"Hmph. Good point."

She got up groggily and ran a hand through tangled hair. "Pick up my ribbon?"

I obliged, picking it up off the floor. Haruhi took it and tied her messy hair back into a rudimentary ponytail. "Thanks." She sighed and checked her watch. "Is there any point trying to go back to my apartment to sleep?"

"Yes."

"Hmph."

"Don't you want a fresh uniform at least?"

"Urgh... yeah."

And with that, Haruhi lurched off like a zombie scenting prey. I had similar plans; my first stop was to get something better to wear (walking around at night in hospital garb means asylum bait) before wandering on home and collapsing unglamorously into bed.

* * *

My alarm rang 2 hours later like a death toll, and as an axe my hand descended on it. Of course, like all heavy sleepers, I set up my alarm on the other side of the room to force me to get out of bed in order to slam it into oblivion. As can be told from the number of dents in my specially armoured and padded alarm clock, this is how I start most of my mornings.

Owing to my lack of luxuries such as free time, my apartment was a complete mess. I was still in the shirt/trousers combo I'd walked home in, and a spare uniform lay waiting on a rack – the one ordered thing in view. My sheets were a mess, shoes and socks left were they were removed, and books scattered here, there and everywhere. An empty bin surrounded by a mound of scrunched up paper took up one corner, several empty water bottles lay on the desk and an army of 'lost' or empty pens and biros appeared to be invading the floor. No place like home, hmm?

I plucked the fresh uniform off the rack and plucked my old clothes off me before getting changed and wandering in front of a mirror to make sure I looked presentable. Sure enough, after a few minutes work I stopped looking like a villain out of a ghost movie and more like a live human, and was ready to rejoin the world of living once again. On the way out, I found Mrs Kasagi had left a package for me; I opened it with a grimace.

The sun was bright and merry and cheerfully seared itself into my tired eyeballs as I walked to school. The opening lessons all proved to be normal, boring and quiet. All the people who didn't get impaled by glass on a regular basis were absorbed by the minutiae of their daily lives, and the people who did were absorbed watching out for theirs. It was during lunch that anything of any real importance actually happened. Like most things, it started with a phone call.

"Koziumi Itsuki."

"It's Sakura!"

"Ah, Sa-chan!" I greeted, sticking to my student/playboy cover.

"Just so!" came the disturbing sound of Sonou Mori faking (accurately) an energetic schoolgirl accent. "Listen, we're having some technical difficulties at our end, so we're moving the location to the computer block. Could you check up on us once we're gone? I'd like to make sure everything at the Shrine's under lock and key, you know how it is. I've got a taxi waiting for you, don't hurry, okay?"

Translation: The Sky Canopy is moving (again), and Haruhi and Kyon are hiding it out in the Interfaces' apartment block for the time being. Check on Kyon's house, make sure it's secure and that no cosmic horrors pop in for tea and mass-murder. Same old. Arakawa's waiting for you, don't worry; it's probably nothing, but expect the world to explode on you anyway, just in case.

"Of course, Sa-chan. I'll get there as soon as I can" I replied cheerfully.

"See you then! Hugs and kisses, bye!"

Don't worry, that last bit doesn't mean anything, she just threw it in to disturb me. Mori has a very dark sense of humour.

I hung up the phone and slid it back into my pocket, smiling back at the sly grins of some of the other males in my class before slipping out the door when no-one was looking.

* * *

I signed out at the nurse's office before I left (said nurse exclaiming shock, joy and surprise at the fact I was already up and about, in that order, with a lot of hugging, random apologising and weeping woman abilities involved), and was waiting outside in the cheerfully obnoxious sunlight waiting for Arakawa's cab, wishing there were seats available for me to cat-nap on. Seriously now, I was tired out on _Saturday_, I'm pretty much dead on my feet by now.

...I sincerely hope that doesn't count as foreshadowing.

Arakawa's yellow cab trundled up nonchalantly, opened its doors nonchalantly, and drove off with me in nonchalantly. The conversation inside, however...

"Here's a new gun." The old driver said by way of saying hi.

"Wha-huh?" Came my less than intelligent response.

Without taking his eyes off the road, he passed a silenced FN Five-seveN back through the partition. I took it carefully; though the safety was on and the clip unloaded with no round chambered, I was never a gun fan. He passed me back a small satchel of clips as well, which I took, and loaded one into the empty pistol (though still not chambering anything; I have no intention of accidentally shooting things, safeties on or not) before slipping it into the same hidden holster the Welrod had lived in.

"Shame about that old one, eh?" Said Arakawa mournfully.

"Err, yes..."

"Served with me for twelve years that old Welrod did. She was a good pistol."

Should you _praise _things for being good at killing people?

"How long did you carry her again, eh?" Arakawa asked again, glancing at me through the rear-view mirror.

"Two months." During which, I only ever fired it twice outside of a firing range. And no, I'm not going to elaborate.

Arakawa nodded. "Damn shame."

I pretended to agree.

* * *

We pulled up outside Kyon's house just at the end of lunch. Arakawa held me back before I could open the door with a curt look at me through the mirror.

"Look, boy, keep that thing close. We didn't mention it because by the time you'd woken up we'd finished talking about it, but..."

He gave a shifty glance through the side mirror, watching out for watchers.

"We think the Canopy may have an insider."

I blinked. "Do you think that's likely? It can't be one of their interfaces-"

"We know."

"Tachibana's doing?"

"We're not sure. In any event, the Canopy was able to stage an intervention despite the Data Entity advancing the time-table in anticipation of this."

That didn't click right. "Hold on, I though that was because Kyon-"

Arakawa waved one hand in a circle. "So? This is another reason. Dealing with Kyon's doubts ahead of time and flat-footing the Canopy were both reasons, amongst others, the Data Entity chose that path. Can I get back on topic now?"

I winced, mentally kicking myself. "Yes, sorry." Though you'd have thought it would tell us.

"It probably thought it didn't have to, it wouldn't be the first time... Anyway, whilst the Canopy couldn't mobilise enough to stop us - for which we should be very, very glad - it still was able to discover the date of the operation in time to react."

Arakawa swallowed dramatically.

"We think there's a mole somewhere; the Canopy has definitely got a hole in somewhere. If it's in us, they'll have that Tachibana bitch on the job, even if she's just as an interpreter, so keep your eyes out. You see her, bag her for me, eh?."

I nodded, suddenly realising the importance of the gun Arakawa had just given me. Mundane sidearms - hell, all 'arms' period - were almost completely useless against the Canopy save for one-off situations (exploiting flaws that Canopy removed or fixed within days, or just plain blind luck) or if wielded by an ISDE Interface. Against Tachibana's lot, though? Why, they're just as flimsy as we are. Though I still have no intention of killing anyone. That's not something I want to repeat, thank you very much. If that idiot could just see _sense..._

"Ha! Little chance of that lad. You see that bitch, drop her. You'll probably even get a promotion."

I don't _need_ a promotion; what would I do with it? I smiled and nodded along before stepping outside. I waved politely as he drove off before turning back to Kyon's house.

It's surprisingly small, actually. That always strikes me every time I see it. With all the fuss we make over him, you'd half expect it to be some kind of temple overflowing with wine or tributes or something. This is just a house. It's exactly the same as the one to its right, and it's exactly the same as the one to its left. You wouldn't notice it until someone pointed it out to you.

Not that it isn't one of the most secure buildings in the world of course. If anyone ever tried to invade Japan, they would falter at this _exact_ spot. Part of the Data Entity is constantly watching over it; it's quite literally impregnable. Come hell, high water or even nuclear fire, this house will always stand.

I slipped off my bag by the gate and walked up to the front new. I already knew from the Kasagis' reports that the family was out, so I didn't bother knocking, just slid the key (yes, I have his house key) into the door and entered.

An ordinary hallway in an ordinary house. No shoes rested in the entryway, no coats hung on the racks. No sounds of laughter or smells of cooking from the kitchen, no sound of the TV in the living room. All empty. Which is good for me, but still a bit creepy nonetheless. I've had enough of empty places lately; Kuyoh always seems to beat me up in them.

When the door closed behind me, I whipped around and drew the FN in a flash, for a second seeing a mass of black hair and glassy, lifeless eyes. Then the door swung open slightly, rattling in the breeze and realised it's hinges needed looking at. Damn, do I need a break...

I lowered the pistol and shut the door properly before starting my sweep, taking out a variety of scanners and ECM equipment Shizuka Kasagi had kindly left on my doorstep. I finished up in the kitchen, wafting an ECM packet around between the rice sacks. The rooms seemed clean, but since paranoia is the only way you can expect to live very long in this business, it didn't hurt to check. Unless Kyon decides to come home early, of course, but the ISDE would warn me if that were the case. Hopefully.

"Have no fear, we are aware of the Subject's current status."

I dropped to crouch and nearly shot her in the head. I say 'nearly' because the bullet did what most bullets did to ISDE Interfaces: bounce right off. I cursed my trigger finger but never lowered the pistol.

"Who are you?" I demanded.

The older woman smiled patiently and stepped into the kitchen, flicking strands of lengthy blonde hair out of her face gracefully and having to duck to get in through the doorframe. "This is Michiko Katari. My apologies; I had intended to introduce you earlier, but recent events intervened. She is stationed next door as the Subject's bodyguard whilst in residence."

It's the Data Entity talking, if you hadn't guessed yet.

"My apologies for the response..." I replied, re-safetying and lowering the pistol.

"Oh, please, feel free to refer to me by my host Interface, it's no problem."

"Good. DataDeity-san would have sounded stupid."

Michiko chuckled politely. "Quite. Don't worry about the security here, we are always aware in this space. I thank you for your thoroughness, however!"

"Um, your welcome." Thank my superiors, not me. This was Sonou's idea.

"Miss Suzumiya and the Subject are still in the apartment building. They're safe for now. Kimidori will be tailing them on any further journeys, along with your own... scouts? Spies?" Katari's expression flickered slightly. "Terminology unknown."

"It's 'observers'." I clarified. Stuff like this occasionally crops up when the Entity gets swamped with too many synonyms. Used to happen a lot in the past, but I digress. They've been getting better lately.

Katari's eyes unfocused. "Observers. Understood - terminology integrated to database." They returned and she bowed, hair sweeping down to the floor. "Well, thank you."

"Is there a reason you popped in in person?" I asked, suddenly feeling morbidly curious. Katari laughed.

"Don't worry! The Michiko Interface is somewhat limited in terms of socialisation programming; she's a... observer. She's more focused on combat operations and protective duties."

My morbid curiosity refused to leave. "And what would have happened if she'd found me without you... hosting?"

Katari looked insulted. "Mister Koizumi, simpler though this one may be, my Interfaces are some indiscriminate children. Do not mistake them for the Canopy Domain's _spawn_."

She flickered out of existence with a blur of static and whiff of ozone and electrical discharge, the Entity equivalent of a huff.

Where did _that_ come from?

* * *

I finished my sweep anyway, nipping outside before Kyon's sister could catch me and ask why I was inside her house – all the ISDE's monitoring systems were there as Katari / the Data Entity had said – and called Mori to confirm it. Along with one other thing.

"Oh, they have, have they?"

"Yes. Her name's Michiko Katari."

"Another woman, huh?" Sonou's chair creaked as she leaned back in her office. "If the Second turns out to be gay, I am going to _laaaugh..._"

"Given that I'm the one who'll have to put up with that, I won't be. You seem to be in a good mood."

"Yes. Caught up on some sleep in the early morning and slipped a caffeine pill. We're all a bit better now."

What's wrong with good old-fashioned coffee I wonder?

"They can fill your bladder and wake you up in the middle of the night." Mori replied sagely. "Well, if the Shrine's secure, that's good. His sister's school is under guard, as are his parents, and he and Haruhi are secure in the Tech Block, so I guess we're safe for now."

I nodded. "That _is_ good." We might get a rest for once.

"So what's this new Interface like?"

"Blonde, so tall she has to duck through doorways. The ISDE was hosting at the time."

"Ah, damn. And the Entity has her on bodyguard duty?"

"Yes."

Mori grunted "I'll have to come to her then. Well, thanks for the update anyway."

We both felt it at the same time. I know because it's happened thousands of times before, and I could hear Mori curse on the other end of the line. The signature shift of a Suzumiya Haruhi Closed Reality being generated.

"...I hate it when that happens..." Mori muttered down the line. "One second, putting you on hold; Kanzaki's on the line..."

I waited as Mori talked to the male half of the Kasagais. I was surprised she didn't just hang up on me. I stood around for about half a minute leaning against a fridge before she got back to me with a click of lines switching and conversation resumed.

"That Closed Space is fairly close and the Second is returning to the Shrine."

"Fortuitous." I noted darkly, wondering what had caused the Space's creation.

"Quite." Mori deadpanned. "In any case, we have a response team prepped and ready."

"Demonstration time?" I asked

"Might as well. And we _can_ protect him with ESPer abilities whilst we're in Closed Space." Which is more protection than we can normally provide.

I nodded again. "Understood."

* * *

_"And why is that?" _

I said earlier that Haruhi does not generate Closed Space willingly, right? This case is no exception; something must have caused her sufficient emotional stress to generate one. Given recent events, that's hardly surprising, and the Kasagis have had to flit around like gnats breaking them down before they and the Shinjin are allowed to spread (That's their job - they're the joint heads of our dedicated Shinjin Response Unit). Whilst the Shinjin are irritating and occasionally problematic - the life expectancy of an SRU ESPer is depressingly short - the real problem is Haruhi, and guess who here has to deal with that?

_"It's all because of you." _

Don't get me wrong, I _do_ want to help her, but having to do so for the Organisation is somewhat... soulless? Heartless? No wonder the ISDE has problems, even I can't pluck the right words out of thin air at the right moment. I just feel that everything I do is done for the Organisation, to save the world, to keep Kyon blissfully ignorant and Haruhi as close to sane as we can manage whilst still under our control. Ah, _that's_ the issue I have. Whilst I do genuinely want to help her and keep her happy, stable and as close to normal as we can get (though that last one is just false hope, even I know that), I also work for the Organisation, and they want to keep her happy to keep her under control. It's a fair reason; a unstable Haruhi is a very, very dangerous Haruhi, but still. It's... impersonal. Cold. Even Mori, for all her wit and black humour, is cold. You saw her actions yesterday; that woman is not averse to the sacrifice of others. And definitely not to herself.

_"If you hadn't given Suzumiya-san some funny ideas, we would still be observing her from behind the scenes right now." _

Perhaps we're wrong to take things into our own hands. Perhaps we should have told Kyon from the very beginning and allowed Haruhi to run on her own devices. Perhaps it's arrogant of us to believe the defence of the world, nay, the _universe itself_, should lie only on our shoulders.

_"What did I do!?" _

Whatever the case, it's too late now.

_"It was you who encouraged her to form that weird club. All because of a conversation she had with you, she came up with the idea of forming a club to gather all the mysterious characters. So you must carry full responsibility for all of this. It is because of you that the three groups most concerned with Suzumiya Haruhi have now gathered together."_

We tell Kyon, we reveal that we've been lying to him the entire time. Given that we've spent so much effort trying to make him accept the SOS Brigade (which, I'll be honest, is really just an odd combo of bodyguard and observation for each member of our little alliance - how better to protect him than to have him protected and surrounded by all three sides on a regular basis?), the chances of this backfiring on us is, to blunt, utterly ludicrous. And that's not just my opinion; our entire group of psychologists agree with me on this one, as do all the higher-ups. Believe me, we _know_ we're dancing on a burning tightrope here.

_"...That's an unfair accusation!"_

Haruhi knows too much, has been here too much, and has suffered for us too much to be so easily set free. And we can't reveal ourselves to the world without also revealing ourselves - our _real _selves - to Kyon, so there's that option down the drain. And given that we can barely talk to the damn thing, we can hardly make the Canopy Domain back down or come to compromise. It wants Kyon, pure and simple. Tachibana's 'Opposition' are just a bunch of deluded pawns the SCD will toss aside the moment they're no longer needed, and who knows what the hell Fujiwara and his ragtag misfits think of all this. They're only siding with the Canopy because the Canopy sides against Mikuru. I don't know what it is between those two groups, but they're certainly keeping it well away from us. We have enough problems of our own without having to deal with the Time-Traveller's feud anyway. Well, that's my opinion; I know Sonou can get incredibly paranoid over it.

_"But that's not the only reason."_

Well, whatever. So long as Haruhi's okay, I won't worry too much about it. We're all too beat up right now for anyone to really try anything. Sonou's just being paranoid. Then again, that _is_ her job.

"_We're here."_

After all, with the fate of the universe on the stake, is it worth the risk not to be?

* * *

"What is it that you wanted to show me by taking me here?"

"There's still time for you to change your mind."

"I'm already here anyway, so cut to the chase."

I can't really describe how it is we can detect Closed Spaces. We can just tell. If we walk through an area with a Space overlapping, we can tell it's there, like a trigger pulled the instant we set foot within it. It's a... smell. A scent that gets stronger the closer we get. I don't know about the others, but the one's created by Haruhi always smell like burnt embers or wood - a forest-fire, rather than a fireplace. Those created by the ISDE smell of completely random things (quite literally; it's different each time) but the SCD's always smell of antiseptic. I've no idea why - we can't get in them - but there it is. These... scents? They don't get mixed into the background smells. Mostly because they're not real smell. They're not particles that your nose detects as part of one of the five senses. We can just tell. Sorry if that confuses you, but there you have it.

Right then, I could sense woodsmoke and that definite tang of... artificiality? I guess that's the best of describing it; a slight pull in the air that told me the Space I was looking for started right here.

I grabbed his hand, ignoring his shout of protest, and moved forwards with the green light. That I'm going to do this in the middle of a crowded street is problematic; hopefully no-one will notice if we quite literally disappear into the crowd, but at least the transition isn't flashy or anything.

"Excuse me, but can you please close your eyes for a while? This won't take long."

He obliged, and I felt the edges of the Space, closing my eyes to concentrate and pull through into something that wasn't, shouldn't and never would be there. I felt a feeling, like water rushing over me, and knew I was through.

"You can open them now."

I know it's tempting, but I really must resist the urge to say 'Welcome, to the Real World...'. The look on Kyon's face was enough.

"We're now in a gap within a cross-dimensional faultline..."

* * *

It's weird, being an ESPer in Closed Space. I don't know what it's like for ordinary people, but everything always seems charged or tingly, every sense is sharpened and you just feel infinitely more alive in here. Shame it's also completely empty, has the inevitably murderous and destructive Shinjin in it and has no food, sunlight or power (unless you're lucky enough to have a power station or private generator within the Space boundaries).

Before someone says it, no, that Haruhi's inner rage manifests itself as giant phosphorescent giants with a fondness for smashing things is not indicative of anything. The Shinjin are the natural inhabitants of Closed Space; you'll find them in any, each and all, no matter who created it. The ISDE simply 'hooked up' Haruhi's abilities to them as an outlet; even in Closed Space, if we let Haruhi's power run free, who knows what could happen?

Hah. That's practically the story of the Organisation isn't it? "Can we risk it?"

* * *

"Right, I think I should join them now."

With Kyon dealt with, I flittered off and joined the other ESPers shooting around the giant like red, crackly darts. One of them drew up alongside, and through the red haze of the data-field, I could make out Kanzaki Kasagi's irrelevantly calm face.

"Pleasant morning, eh Koizumi-kun?"

"Kasagi-san. The Second's on that roof over, by the way. Try not to hit him, please."

Kanzaki laughed. "I make no promises; this is the first time we've done this for an audience." His look hardened. "Once this is done, go find your Suzumiya girl before she starts generating more of these damn things."

My own smile hardened. "Of course."

Kanzaki nodded and veered back into formation. "Second Squad, move in and attack, standard pattern! Koizumi... just try to stay out of the way, okay?"

"You don't have to tell me twice!" I shouted back, making him laugh. Yes, there's a story behind that. It's not very interesting.

"Smart lad! Okay, SRUs, let's dice this bastard!"

The other ESPers moved into position with a cheer and started their deadly game of mid-air cat and mouse. I, meanwhile, simply took the pleasure of flight, looping around a safe distance (it would look odd if one of us was simply standing still in the middle of all this). It's rare we get a chance to do this; even in this situation, it's a wonderful break to simply throw ordinary physics and reality to the side shoot around like a... no, not even birds fly like this. Something completely out of our reality. You can understand it, right? It's so different, it's like a nice, calm break. A release. Not a cup of water to a man in a desert, but certainly one to someone who would like a nice drink. With all the other supernatural wierdness going on around us all the time, it's nice to be able to join in once in a while.

Kanzaki's team targeted its arms first. They're the main danger; it's most dangerous weapon. It's not like they can toss energy bolts or anything like that; they're purely physical beasts even if they look see-through and incorporeal. With the main dangerous neutralised, the rest of it sliced away easily. You've got to hand it to them; the Kasagis know their stuff, even if they're none too fond of Haruhi (itself understandable, I suppose). As the pieces of the beast slid their separate ways, he flew back over to me.

"Our job's done, Koizumi. Your turn now."

I bowed. "My gratitude is yours, Kanzaki-san. You did well."

Kanzaki snorted. I wondered if I'd just patronised him.

"Need anything else?" He asked stiffly.

I winced. "No, thank you."

"Then I'll be off. Seriously, stop Suzumiya before we have to go out again. This day's been bad enough as is and I need sleep before I drop out the sky."

I nodded, genuinely this time. "I understand." A yawn managed to escape my lips, making him laugh. "T-Thank you for your support... I could use sleep too."

Kanzaki smirked. "God rest you then." He dropped backwards and scooted off with the rest of the SRU, rejoining his red flock with another barked order. I made similar tracks.

* * *

After dropping off Kyon, Arakawa took to me to Haruhi's apartment.

Thus was I standing before her door, hesitating before knocking. I didn't know what to expect inside, I didn't know what had sparked her off, and I didn't know who she was angry with, on whatever level. If it's against the Organisation, that could be trouble. The higher-ups might try to put her through conditioning again.

She didn't answer the door. I knocked again.

"I said it's open!" Came a muffled shout through the painted wood.

Ah, that's why.

I pushed it aside gingerly. The apartment was a mess, but that didn't tell me anything, not even the pile of unopened post. We pay all her bills and don't contact her via the mail, so checking through it was just another one of those things sacrificed on the altar of time and necessity.

Haruhi was in the lounge, sitting on that battered sofa with her knees pulled up to her chin. The TV was on, displaying some silly kid's show with the lights reflecting off her eyes eerily.

It took me a moment to notice. Her eyes weren't really moving, not following the movement of the characters or reacting as the changing light levels jumped around the on-screen spectrum. She seemed almost lifeless, simply seeing the screen without actually watching it, and didn't react as I sank into the beanbag in the corner. I adopted the most comfortable pose I could get and waited for her to collect herself. Just me, sitting and watching Haruhi sit and watch nothing at all, lost in thought. The light and sound of the TV didn't count; for all intents and purposes, this was silence.

The show was over, and the adverts running.

"I talked to Kyon today."

I looked up, not realising I had been slowly drooping the entire time. Haruhi still kept her pose and stillness, but at least she was talking. Do I need to mention the monotone, or can that be inferred enough anyway? Ah, that's not important. So it's Kyon that's set her off like this. This better be good.

"I nearly told him everything, you know that?"

This wasn't good at all. Still, I kept my silence. Haruhi needed to say what Haruhi needed to say.

"I nearly revealed all. You, me. The Canopy, the Shinjin. Himself. Myself"

Nearly isn't the same as did.

"I didn't. Obviously, I couldn't, I just... I just made something up. Some crap about a baseball game and not meaning anything in the world." She laughed bitterly. "How fucking stupid of me."

She leaned back and flicked the TV off lethargically, the remote dropping to the floor with a flumpf.

"I said all that, and yet... it was real, you know? I didn't realise it at first, but it was true. I used to want that. It wasn't a stadium that started it, but I actually did want to be the nail that stuck up. I wanted normality to fall the wayside. I wanted to be someone, mean something, do things no other person could do, and to hell with anyone who tried to stop me."

One of her legs slid out into the sea of paper on the floor, stirring it idly like a pot.

"Now look at me."

I looked at some of the sheets strewn around the tiny apartment. Some of them were actually handwritten; Psychological reports on the Second's activities, notes on abilities and weirdness, sightings of Kuyoh models and Tachibana. Haruhi's handwriting.

"Do you know what he said? Do you know what he said once I'd spilled by beans without, no, _despite_ trying _not_ to?"

I waited.

"'I see'."

She looked up at me properly, her eyes moving and glimmering again, but not in a good way. She looked almost... broken. "That's all he said. All he would say. 'I see'. Two words. No sympathy, no empathy. He takes my life and ruins into this... _this..._ and that's all I get?! What the hell?!" She broke eye contact and pulled herself even tighter into herself. "He's the one who caused all this! Why-W-What the hell!?"

I rose off the bag to put a hand on her shoulder, but she only drew away further.

"Why? _Why?_ Why are we even here?! What's the point, why has he done this? What did we do?! Why? I had a family, I had friends, I LIKED my life! WHY?"

She clutched at my shirt, hands balled into fists and dragging me into the sofa.

"Why..."

She was crying. Sobs racking her entire body.

"Why... why did he have to..."

I had absolutely no idea what to do. I knew what I was _supposed _to do – contact the Organisation and bring in the med teams if she ever had another breakdown – but it just seemed so... cold. Drugs could only cover-up so much; this girl deserved answers.

"Why are we even... why is..."

The problem is getting them.

"Why...?"

Because we don't know either.

* * *

I cleaned Haruhi up as best I could and left her on the couch. She was asleep when I left and I trusted she'd stay that way.

That above breakdown probably looks out of context. I'll address that now.

Haruhi... wasn't born Haruhi. We made her that way, as part of her cover. Believe it or not, we never actually intended for her to _become_ that way – all cheerful and manic – she chose to exaggerate those traits on her own. Probably a reactionary thing, I don't know. Even so... I mentioned before that some of us didn't take too well to finding out Kyon actually wanted normality. Of course, that's just his surface desires; secretly, buried in that ever-present buzzword, his subconscious, he really wanted this to happen. Of course, in spite of this desire, he never really thought it through; it's his subconscious. That's sort of the point. Thus, he created ESPers, aliens and time travellers, because he wanted them to exist, but he never, ever thought "I will make ESPers exist! I will make aliens exist! I shall time-travellers, espionage and an evil super-supercomputer for them to fight!". He wouldn't. He's just an ordinary person. Ironies of ironies, he's_ sane._

Kyon is human. He is like anyone of us. In fact, he's probably closer to normality than _we_ are. The Sky Canopy is not. And for that, we will fight for him.

Does that make sense to you? I hope it does, because at times it's the only thing that keeps us going. That and hatred of the Canopy Domain. Don't worry, we _will_ fight. The question is at what cost. With the entire universe on the cards, where can you draw a line? Can you even draw one at all?

With quite literally _everything_ and every_one_ on the line... what is worth that risk? Can we afford to do a good deed, assuage our morality and save our souls, if in doing so we could lose everything? What would make us the worse villain; killing, brainwashing and cheating a few, or inadvertently destroying _everything_? Or could it be that, in trying to save everything, we are unwittingly sacrificing it on the altar of necessity?

Where do you draw the line? Where should we stop, at what depth should we stop digging our graves? At what expense should victory come? Should we be deciding that? Do we even have that right?

So many questions...

...tire you out.

* * *

End of Chapter Two

* * *

Author's Notes:

Originally, this chapter, originally called 'Space Closed', was going to have everything in; literally, it would 'Parallel' the last two chapters of volume one, from Itsuki's 'demonstration' to the Closed Space incident with Haruhi. However, this was turning it into an increasingly long mammoth leviathan of a chapter, so I've actually had to split into three: _Distance_,_ Pleasant Days_ and _Retaliation._

Even so, this one's quite long, hitting in at just under 9000 words (_Of Cheats And Liars_ was 12000) and this is just the first third... yeah, this _Space Closed_ needed splitting... _

Sorry it's a tad late. Spent three weeks in beta-traction. Sadly, my beta reader is caught up by exams and coursework, so I've ended up having to check through it myself. I managed to catch a few errors (like accidentally saying the Kasagis are in charge of the Observers rather than the Shinjin Response Unit... whoops), but there'll probabl ystil be sum lieing around somewear...

Enjoy! Comments, theories and Wild Mass Guessing all welcomed!

-MrCJ / Guessmyname

EDIT: Just fixed the plethora of typos in the ending section. Word to the wise, just because you wrote it recently doesn't mean its not littered with errors...

EDIT: Fixed some minor continuity errors - like the battle for the SOS clubroom lasting until midnight (which begs the question of how Kyon managed to get home uninterrupted) and fixing some of the characterisations in the meeting (that's what you get when you make up characters as you go along... you'd think I'd have learnt from Flipswitch's mistakes by now)


	3. 03: Pleasant Days

**Parallel Running**  
_A Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya fanfiction  
MrCJ/Guessmyname_

_Many thanks to Dracobolt, my Beta Reader_

_Please don't sue_

* * *

**Chapter Three**  
_**Pleasant Days**_

* * *

"Feeling any better?"

"Hm? Yeah, I-GAH!"

"What?"

"Itsuki!?"

"_What?_"

"W-What are you doing here?!"

"Um, I stayed the night? I've done it before Haruhi."

Haruhi stopped panicking on the sofa and softened down into a glare. "You didn't have to wake me up like _that._"

"Why, is there a way you'd like to woken up in the morning?" I replied airily, putting the (now empty) glass of water back on the table with my trademark smile.

Haruhi dragged herself upright, groaning and accepting the towel I held out with an irritated grunt. As she patted her face dry again, I stood back upright and checked my watch.

"Come on, it's 7 o'clock."

Haruhi grunted.

"We've got to get ready for school?"

Haruhi grunted.

"You need a shower and to change out of that uniform?"

Haruhi sniffed at her shirt, winced.

"Come on, you're not a four year old-" I said, pulling her up.

"I'm _not_ a four year old!" she moaned. "I'm just sleepy, damn it!"

"That's your fault for sleeping on the sofa. That bed of yours is perfectly comfortable you know?"

"I-hey, you slept in my bed?!"

"What? You weren't using it."

"B-But that's my _bed!_ You shouldn't sleep in other people's beds; that's wrong!"

"And yet, I am awake whilst you are not. Go shower."

"Hmph."

With Haruhi up whether she wanted to be or not and heading off to the bathroom, I headed into the kitchen where the promise of toast and caffeine awaited me. One good night's rest isn't enough to make up for a lifetime's worth of bad sleeping habits. I don't think I'll ever _not_ be tired.

A few minutes and two slices of burnt bread later, I got a whiff of oranges and Haruhi reappeared, one large towel tied around her like an oversized toga and a smaller one being dragged around through her hair. She nodded at a cup of coffee waiting on the side. "That for me?"

I nodded back, sipping a cup of my own. Haruhi grinned and swept the cup up daintily, somehow managing not to spill any, drop her towel or stop drying her hair in the progress. "Feeling any better?" I asked.

Haruhi nodded, sipping. "Yeah... it sucks, sure, but the show's gotta go on, right?"

"That it does."

She gave me a serious look. "Is there something-"

"Hmm? Oh, no, no. No operations or anything planned for today. Just be Suzumiya and mess with his head to your heart's content."

Haruhi grinned some more. Of course, the rest of the Organisation will still be tripping over itself making sure the Canopy can't get within a mile, but for us privileged SOS members it's like a miniature holiday. Well, myself, Haruhi and Kyon anyway. Mikuru's always like that and Nagato probably doesn't understand the concept. I finished off the last dregs and put my cup on the pile of 'Stuff to get washed sometime this year'.

"You know you're supposed to hallucinate if you drink too much of that."

"Then I should definitely drink more. Hallucinations would probably be better than the reality."

Haruhi scoffed. "Alright Captain Optimism!"

I laughed. "My apologies, my Chief. If you want to leech off my caffeine supplies, you only have to ask you know."

"Haha, you know they wouldn't let me drink too much of the stuff anyway."

For the curious, it messes up the Conditioning if she does. Distasteful as it is, it's still necessary, so it's best for her not to. I don't like having to identify suicide victims. Or homicide ones, for that matter.

"Wow, _your_ good mood managed to get derailed quickly, didn't it!"

I winced. "Sorry."

Haruhi understood. "Bad few days, huh?"

I nodded. "Bad few days."

At least it should be quiet for a few days more now. I know the Canopy and its Interfaces will come back to bite at us, probably painfully, but until then...

Verily is Peace just an absence of War.

I smiled at Haruhi and bade my leave. "It's about high time I got changed myself."

Haruhi nodded. "See you at the clubroom."

* * *

It took me ten minutes to find a clean shirt.

I should probably clean up at some point. Oh well. At least I'll be able to rest up a little in class. I slid the gun into blazer holster and pulled my bag out from under a pile of reports. It'll be refreshing to pretend I'm an ordinary student again.

* * *

I must be the only guy going up this hill who's actually looking forward to school.

How amusing.

* * *

...I just realised I forgot my lunch. And I have no money for the cafeteria.

_Daaamn._

* * *

Now I'm hungry and tired. And we have English next.

Optimism is futile.

* * *

"H-Hey, Koizumi-kun, d-do you want to, erm, would it be okay if... willyoueatlunchwithme?"

"I'm afraid I cannot."

"O-oh..."

"I made the mistake of leaving my box at home. I can't lunch, period."

"T-Then... have mine!"

"Oh, why thank you!"

* * *

That FiveSeveN is digging into my back. I wish I didn't have to carry it.

It's not very Peaceable.

* * *

Hmm. This bento is self-made. The rice is burnt.

Can't complain.

* * *

We just got our test scores back. I'm down two. I told the teacher work was getting busy. He looked sympathetic enough.

* * *

...How on earth am I supposed to return this box?

* * *

...I'm tired again.

* * *

Opinion re-evaluated: at least in the Organisation I feel like I'm actually doing something important.

"Had a good day?" Haruhi said conversationally as I dragged myself through the door.

"Let me guess..." I replied. "I look how I feel?"

She shrugged. "Not really. If that were the case, you'd've died of soul-crushing despair by now."

I chuckled and collapsed wearily into one of the clubroom's supply of hard, metal chairs. "Rejoice; the system works."

"A-Ano... would you like some tea?"

"Is it caffeinated, Mikuru?"

"Y-Yes, it's Earl Grey."

"Excellent. Yes please."

As you can probably tell, Kyon isn't here yet.

Nagato and Mikuru were in their natural states; reading in a corner and brewing tea in a maid outfit respectively, whilst Haruhi was simply lounging in her commander's chair and spinning again.

"What? It's awesome chair! It was made to be spun in!"

Sure, Haruhi. Sure. "Can't you pull some weight to get us plebeians more comfortable seating?"

"Wheeeee! You can sit on my lap if you want."

Er, I'll pass. Don't want to get sick and dizzy. Plus we'd be screwed if Kyon came in. I shook my head and glanced at the SOS Brigade's quietest member.

I blinked. She was reading, as normal, something absurdly large, also as normal but... something looked off.

It took me a moment to spot it.

"Nagato? Where are your glasses?"

Haruhi looked up as well, squinting before gasping. "Holy crap!"

"..." Nagato kept reading without so much as a blink.

"..."

"..."

Flip of page.

"..."

"...Nagato?"

"Evening." Kyon grunted as he walked through the door and flopped into a chair opposite me. That must have been why she couldn't respond; Kyon was coming.

"You're late Kyon!" Haruhi shouted angrily. Kyon shrugged. Haruhi shouted some more. Mikuru came around with tea, whilst Nagato simply read.

Just an ordinary Brigade day.

* * *

"Didn't you notice?"

"Hmm? Notice what?"

"He's tired."

"...What, him?"

"No, I mean, he's tired of us. Of me."

I frowned. "How do you mean?"

Haruhi pondered with a finger on her chin. "If I had to say it... 'Why me?'. That's what he's thinking right now. I think."

A faint breeze rustled our hair and pulled at our clothing as we walked back down the street. We'd left at different times and gone in different directions; both of us simply changed our route to meet. It's a simple tactic; it reduces the chances of Kyon finding out where we actually live by accident. As for our real ones, well my apartment and Haruhi's flat aren't that far apart. Certainly within walking distance. The Organisation wouldn't let her stray _too_ far.

"That thought enters all our minds at one stage or another, Haruhi. He'll get over it."

"But what if he starts looking for answers?" She persisted

I frowned. She had a point. "It shouldn't be too much of a problem; we've fed him enough information, he just needs time to digest it all."

"Really? I'm kinda worried... if he starts to seriously look for answers, no cover-up in the world will be able to stop him..."

"I'll pass it onto the PR division, don't worry. Trying to control things too much might reveal our hand anyway."

Haruhi didn't respond. So silenced, we walked, treading the familiar path back to our respective homes through the after-school hustle, bustle and traffic. Ironically, our being lost in the crowd meant we could talk freely; no-one would pay attention to us in particular, out of the full sea of students walking wearily home.

"He needs an anchor!" Haruhi declared suddenly. When I looked back to see what she was talking about, she blushed inexplicably. I got the impression she hadn't meant to say that out loud. "I-I mean, well... yeah. He needs an anchor. He needs a reason to stay. I-I..."

...

"'I' what?"

"...nothing..."

"What? You've got me curious now."

"IT'S _NOTHING_, ALRIGHT?!"

Jesus, Haruhi! Did you have to shout that in the middle of the street?!

"...I'm going home." She replied, pushing me aside and trudging off wearily, head low. Some of the other students gave me a pitying look; I just looked confused. What the hell had that been about?

* * *

"Damnit Koizumi! I just got home!"

"I'm aware of that."

"Geez... didn't I tell you to stop her? My wife's leaving in five days, I don't want to - I don't have _time_ to go flying around shutting down _your_ mistakes!"

"Kanzaki-san, could you please calm down?"

"...argh... damnit Koizumi!"

I narrowed my eyes even though Kanzaki Kasagi wouldn't be able to see it over the phone. "She's just having a bit of a bad spell. We all have our bad days, wouldn't you agree?"

"..."

"She'll calm down, don't worry. If we try to rush her we might just make things worse."

"That's what the Conditioning is for."

"_Kan_-"

"We lost another one today."

"..."

"Joanna Lee. A foreigner, but still a very capable ESPer; she came all the way out here just for us. It snatched her out of the air and crushed her in its fist. You know you can still see through their hands when they do that?"

"..."

"Find a way to stop her, Koizumi, before we lose any more."

* * *

In the end, I figured she was tired, and let her rest. Some things are best dealt with tomorrow.

Kanzaki wasn't pleased.

* * *

Two days passed. There's not much to say about them. Wednesday and Thursday were like every other Wednesday and Thursday. Friday rolled around with its usual aplomb, and as I wandered the corridors after school, it had so far managed to throw up the same as the other two days, asides from being stupidly warm. School, food and the death of optimism beneath the wheels of the invincible, soul-crushing socialisation machine.

Beats death by Interface, I suppose. Or by Shinjin for that matter. Or by an Opposition sniper round... we have a lot of things trying to kill us, don't we?

"Don't worry. We are confident we can protect you in the event of hostile actions."

Emiri's smile was pleasant as always even as I nearly had a heart attack. Part of me's glad I didn't automatically go for that damn FiveSeveN...

"Why? Instinctive protocol for self-protection is of no disadvantage to you, Koizumi-kun."

...Pardon?

She shook her head, still smiling. "Never mind."

I chuckled at the oddity of the situation. If someone heard us out of context, well, god knows what would happen. I wonder if she gets that a lot. "Emiri Kimidori, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

The green-haired Interface simply shrugged. "Probability? This is a coincidental meeting; there is no alert or Operational information required."

Oh. Lucky.

She nodded. "In short, yes. This is what's termed a... social... conversation, correct?"

I met her smile with one of my own and nodded back. "Yes, I suppose so."

Emiri seemed to be beaming. "Excellent!"

I decided not to ask.

"Um..." The Interface hesitated. "...I am not familiar with the social aspects of phatic talk and baseline interaction... my apologies?"

"That's quite alright."

She fidgeted. I found the sight oddly disturbing. "Um.... What are the social aspects of phatic talk and baseline interaction?"

Uh... "Whatever comes to mind." Probably. Don't quote me on that.

"Ah, I see." She bounced eagerly. "So, to conclude, the previous parts of this conversation would also count as social interaction?"

...Where is this going? "Yes, I suppose so."

"...This conversation does not match preloaded scripts and recordings of social interaction..."

I smiled. "Ah, but those will have been taken from ordinary students, correct?"

"Yes. It's necessary as part of our Operational cover-story."

"Right here and now, do we count as ordinary students?"

"Aah- no!"

I swear this to god with all my honesty: Emiri Kimidori looked genuinely _relieved._

"This makes so much more sense now! Thank you, Koizumi-kun!"

"You're welcome." I think?

"Well, in that case, might I inform you of our current Operational status?"

"...If you want"

Emiri beamed some more. "The Subject, Yuki-san, and Miss Asahina are in the clubroom. Miss Suzumiya is 5.1m from entering the door at a speed of 1.12mph. Ryouko-san is well. Katari-san is resting. The Entity is currently performing deep-level scans of the surrounding area."

Er...

"Miss Mori is asleep. Mrs Kasagi is asleep. Mr Kasagi is reading. Mr Arakawa is asleep. The Tamaru brothers are in the firing ranges. The-"

"-that's quite alright, Kimidori-san." I interrupted hastily.

Kimidori beamed.

"If there are no objections from you, I need to be in the clubroom."

"There are none! Thank you for the interaction!"

"You're welcome."

I bowed politely and turned to leave.

"Koizumi-kun?"

"...Yes?"

"Work hard!"

"...I will."

* * *

Well that... that was _weird._

I reached the clubroom, still disturbed by Kimidori, and also late... I opened the door hoping Haruhi wouldn't call me out on it.

And inside?

Well...

"Whoa, what is this?"

With Kyon's back to her, Haruhi shot me a death glare that showed her feelings about my late arrival quite clearly. I, meanwhile, was too distracted by the legless bunnysuit to notice.

"Is there a costume party today? My apologies for not wearing one today."

Bad line: Nagato isn't, but given the situation, I think I did quite well. I smiled my usual smile and slid into my seat, Kyon being distracted by Mikuru as usual. The both of us watched as (still angry) Haruhi started braiding (scared stiff) Mikuru's hair... in a bunny suit and maid outfit respectively.

Must be of those days.

"Wanna play Othello?" Kyon asked tiredly, clearly thinking the same thing.

"Gladly. I haven't played it for a long time."

* * *

"Koizumi, it's a board game. You're supposed to be a genius, aren't you? How do you manage to fail at Othello _that_ badly?"

"Oh? Let's see you play against a God. See how long _you_ last. And the teachers give me the answers beforehand anyway. And _you_, even though you don't need them. We do_ run_ the school."

"Well, well... perhaps you should start studying proper then! Lest your genius fall behind the likes of mine!"

"Haha, Haruhi. Haha."

"No seriously, I can tutor you if you'd like."

"I'll live, I think."

We walked home in the heat. I wanted to ask about her foul mood earlier, but it seemed to have dissipated. Or she was hiding it. If there's one thing Haruhi is good at, it's hiding things. Make me tell you about that incident with the birthday cake some day.

"I'm not 'hiding', it's just... grah."

"Grah?"

"Mikuru."

"Ah."

Haruhi chewed a nail. "She's after Kyon."

I shrugged. "So's everyone else and their mother. Your point?"

"No, I mean, _after '_after' Kyon."

"..."

"Ohforheaven's... She wants In. His_. __Pants_, Koizumi! Do you need me to spell it out for you?"

Just in case I missed the emphasis, she added accompanying hand gestures.

"..._ah._" I replied, paling.

"Yes 'ah'. You know what Mikuru's like – probably the only reason she hasn't given the game away yet is because they hardly ever get a chance for a long conversation. The moment she gets... _'in'_, she'll crumble! She'd spill it all out just to be a romantic for god's sake! No. Yes. _Yes_ for God's sake!"

"Haruhi, calm down. The world is _not_ going to end because of teenage hormones." That'll be the Canopy's job. Or possibly yours, according to Kanzaki.

"Oh come on Koizumi, this is _serious!_"

"But this is _Mikuru_ we're talking about. The little moe-bomb practically explodes if she gets within two feet of him. If she ever ended up as his lover she'd probably die of shock. Or embarrassment. Probably both."

Haruhi's response was blunt. It needed to be.

"Would her superiors care?"

...

"...shit."

"Told you it was serious!"

* * *

Sonou Mori was not pleased either.

She rested her head in her hands, illuminated from beneath by the cheery 'Hello Kitty' lamp and looking ready to murder something. I was glad I was standing safely stuffed away in a corner.

We were back in that private study, another meeting underway. Once again, it was the Guards leaders (and me) only, with Katari sitting in for / as the ISDE. Reactions to her had been... mixed.

"We are aware." Katari smiled. It was a tight smile, more of a grimace, a sharp line dragged across her face; nothing at all like Emiri or Asakura's. Because of her height and the room's low ceiling, she was stooping next to me, having found out the hard way there wasn't enough room to sit down. "Even so, I am here at Miss Mori's invitation."

Sonou smiled. It wasn't like Emiri's either.

"I'm glad you've come. Though I wasn't expecting you to be hosting."

Katari shrugged, still 'smiling'. I wished she'd stop; if the Entity makes them smile so much to put people at ease, it is not working in her case. Well, except for Nagato, obviously, but that's prototypes for you. _She _solves the problem by not smiling at all...

"Kimidori-san is currently filling Katari's normal role. You wanted to meet her, so I hosted with her instead; it's more secure if we meet here."

Mori looked mildly surprised. "Oh. Thank you."

Katari smiled again, and managed to get it mostly right this time. "You're welcome." Her face hardened. "The security risk surrounding the Subject is increasing. Already, there have been two attacks on his residence: in the first case, they were repulsed with two Canopy models destroyed."

The room paused a beat.

"And the second-" Mori began to ask.

"Currently still in progress. Most of my primary processing power is being diverted to Emiri-san; hence our/my low presence and output here."

Ah. That explains the sudden personality change: Katari must be more in control than the ISDE compared to last time.

"Oh." Mori looked concerned. "Do you need any-"

"No further support is required; it is purely Interface-based combat. Nagato-san has also engaged the enemy forces. Success probability fluctuating around 79.521%. If this meeting concludes quickly, I can join the battle and raise it to an approximate 99.866%."

"Oh."

"I have made my introductions. May I leave?"

"Er, yes. Sorry, ye-"

Katari left in a buzz of static.

"-s you can..."

The collected commanders stared at the point by my right where Katari had disappeared. I told you they took getting used to.

Keichii spoke first, clearing his throat and looking to me. "Well, that topic is closed now. Suzumiya said there was a danger with the Time-Traveller faction, correct?"

I jerked to attention and nodded quickly. "Well... yes. She believes Mikuru may have romantic intentions towards the Second. Considering Miss Asahina's... naivety, she believes allowing the two to come close will be dangerous." I paused. "I agree."

Keichii lowered his head and frowned, whilst younger brother Yutaka sighed and leaned back. The Tamarus are in charge of our operation to keep an eye on Kyon; they're our equivalent of Katari only with a bit more grace and operating from our sphere of operation. In other words, they're counter-espionage experts.

"Asahina Mikuru is a simple person." Yutaka began, sounding like a historical narration reel except in present tense. "She loves, she hates, she is, to whit, 'pure'. She cannot hide emotions, and if she has issue with something she will speak against it. Hesitantly and constantly self-questioning, yes, but she will still speak. She will still act." He sighed against and nodded. "Suzumiya is right. If she develops too much sympathy, she could become problematic."

Kanzaki's eyes narrowed. "Suzumiya be damned, I fail to see the issue here. How would this benefit her superiors or her older version?"

"Depends. Does anyone really know their goals? Raise a hand, please, I would quite like to know. Who knows? Maybe they're just sorry for him."

"We're not villains, Yutaka!"

The younger Tamaru rolled his indifferent eyes over in his direction and Kanzaki scowled.

"We're _protecting_ him! If the Canopy got its hands on him-"

"He's living a lie, Mr. Kasagi. For his own protection or not, it is still possible to... sympathise."

"We _die_ for him Yutaka! Maybe you'd know that if you ever went out in the field once in a while!"

The younger Tamaru returned to looking at the ceiling without so much as a shrug.

Shizuka put a hand on her husband's before he could explode, and Kanzaki settled back into his seat, staring daggers.

"I'll contact Ms. Asahina – the older one." Mori stated. "Though if, no wait, wouldn't she already... argh, time-travel's too confusing... I'll contact her elder version and raise a complaint. She might know already of course... damn time loops."

Shizuka chuckled appreciatively. "Quite. We also have an issue to raise." She and Kanzaki looked over to me, and I suddenly realised what they were about to say.

"There has been an increase in Closed Space generated by Haruhi Suzumiya. The Response Unit is beginning to build up casualties of our own. Could you elude, Koizumi-kun?"

I shuffled awkwardly. Whilst I had expected this to come up at some point after some of Kanzaki's more... pointed comments, I didn't have all the answers myself. We never know precisely what causes the generation, we just have to guess, like throwing darts around on a board whilst blindfolded.

"I'm not sure." I replied honestly. "The issue with Mikuru is likely one cause, the others... I don't know. I think she just needs a break."

Kanzaki laughed darkly. "Don't we all?"

I turned on him irritably. "Yes, but _most_ of us don't have to be around the Second 7 hours a day and, as you are so rightly concerned, _most_ of us do not generate Closed Space and Shinjin when angry. Or would you rather we simply released her powers completely?"

Kanzaki riled. "Of course not!"

"She's taken everything we've thrown at her and has succeeded brilliantly; the Second suspects nothing. And now you're angry with her for having doubts that she has kept to herself and _not _flaunted at us at every turn? She's a human being, not a saint; most parents would _kill_ for a teenager as obedient as her!"

Mori winced. Arakawa chuckled.

Kanzaki halted on the verge of retorting thanks to a quiet hand holding him back and keeping him in his seat. Shizuka smiled a wearily patient smile like an aged schoolteacher watching seven year-olds fight over lollipops.

"Koizumi-san, we understand. It's just that with the security problems lately, things have been... hectic." She squeezed his hand. "I know the strain is on all of us, but this needs to be dealt with as soon as possible."

Translation: We have enough problems without Haruhi creating more. Stop whining and get over yourself.

I frowned, but sat down as well. If nothing else, Shizuka Kasagi makes a good negotiator.

Mori had leaned forwards, arms crossed and resting on her table. "What are your suggestions, Kasagi?"

Shizuka shrugged. "Talk to her, I suppose. If she can overcome her problems on her own, then all the better for us."

Kanzaki pondered this, before nodding as well. "I second."

"Third." Said Keichii. Yutaka just shrugged.

Mori nodded wearily. "Motion passed." A sigh and a mutter. "I need one of those little hammers for this..." She sighed and turned to me. "Koizumi, you're her handler. Sort this out as best as you can. If you feel you can't, I can prepare another run of the Conditioning if it proves necessary. Or we can follow alternative methods if you have any."

I nodded. "I understand, Mori-san."

* * *

This is a threat. This is a direct threat; sort out Haruhi, or _we _will. They know the effects the Conditioning has on her! I will not see her go through that another time. It's sickening. For her and for me.

Damn it, what can I do... what can I do...

This is really going to test my worth as a friend here, isn't it? A real good measure. Say the right thing at the right time to get the right response and the right ending. Dodge the Bad End and pull a victory from nowhere.

Or, failing that, a mental breakdown and the cold rooms and fluids of the Conditioning.

And failing _that, _making the world explode and everyone dies.

This... is going to require some thought. Excuse me.

* * *

"Koizumi-kun?"

I turned and watched the older woman in surprise as she ran over, brown hair flying all over the place and her office shirt not done up properly.

"...Ms. _Asahina_...?"

The elder version of my elder sempai smiled mischievously. "Correct!"

She drew alongside me cheerfully and unlike the 30 year old she appeared to be, tucking loose hair behind her ear, and smiled some more. "How is Miss Suzumiya doing? I hear you're having some trouble!"

I frowned. She wasn't in that meeting.

"Recursive Knowledge." She said simply. Oh, right. Now I get what Sonou was talking about earlier. I sighed.

"Does this mean you're going to give some inanely cryptic advice that only make sense in hindsight but will somehow lead through a strange though also hindsight-visible string of coincidences to me somehow saying the right thing at the right moment?"

"Yep!"

Wow, an honest to god sarcasm failure. "Joy."

She just smiled cutely again. At least on the older version, you know it's the real her that's doing it. Though I wish she'd take this a little more seriously.

"Haruhi is human, and a teenager." Asahina told me seriously. "Just try to remember that."

I looked back at her quickly. She was watching me carefully... yes, she was definitely being genuine and serious. But I know that, why do I need reminding? Asahina looked so serious it was beginning to make me nervous.

Then she laughed, and the illusion broke.

"Don't worry too much about it anyway, Itsuki. You'll say the right thing; everything will be fine."

"How encouraging."

She patted me on the shoulder encouragingly with another enigmatic smile, before disappearing down a side corridor, humming some silly song. I just shook my head, waved to the mansion owner's energetic daughter in passing, and continued on my search for Haruhi.

* * *

"Koizumi-kun?"

Oh for heaven's sake...

"Shizuka Kasagi? How can I help you?"

Shizuka ran over to me as I stood in the doorway into the grounds. Compared to Ms. Time-traveller, she held a more sober expression, and I was glad someone else seemed to be taking this seriously.

"Are you going to find Suzumiya?"

"Yes."

"I'll come with you."

I frowned. "Is that wise?"

She stopped by my side panting with a suspicious folder tucked under her arm. I got the impression she'd been running all over the mansion looking for me, so I waited and let her have her say.

"Don't worry... not going to try and talk to her..." she straightened out her skirt. "I want to talk to you along the way."

I blinked. "Oh. Okay."

Shizuka smiled. "Shall we go then?"

* * *

"So, what's in the folder?"

"Hmm? Oh, it's something Yutaka-san asked me to give to Suzumiya. I don't actually know what's in it."

"...I see."

"It's probably some sort of report on something or other."

"Right." What a useful deduction.

We walked in silence for a while, basking in the afternoon sun and the sounds of life going on around us. A supermarket truck rumbled by, and we had to part to let a woman with a baby carrier past, whilst leaves scattered around our feet. The normality of the situation was surprisingly soothing.

"Makes you envious, doesn't it?" Shizuka said softly, watching the mother disappear into the distance with a wistful look on her face. I didn't know how to reply, so I didn't.

More not-silence and a gentle breeze. I enjoyed the warmth of the day.

"Have you ever considered what it would be like?" She asked.

"What would what be like?"

"Life. Ordinary life. Just... being an ordinary person. Me an office lady, you just a schoolboy."

"Life would certainly be simpler."

"Simple like simply walking home with your son rather than going to keep a reality warper not destroying the world from mental breakdown caused by the stress of not destroying the world, you mean?"

I nodded. "Yes. Simple like that."

Shizuka looked at me for a second before chuckling into her palm. "You're a funny person, Koizumi-kun!"

Erm, thanks?

She sighed and went back to looking ahead to dodge pedestrians and look thoughtful.

"Kanzaki doesn't hate her, you know."

I blinked. "Huh?"

"He doesn't hate her."

"...oh. Yes. Yes, I knew."

"It's just... she's not the only who finds life hard."

For once, I smiled an honest smile. "I understand, Shizuka-san." We turned onto Haruhi's street. "Come on, we're here."

* * *

This time, Haruhi answered the door in person when I knocked. Shizuka garnered a look of surprise.

"Um... hello."

"Good afternoon, Miss Suzumiya."

"Haruhi, this is Shizuka Kasagi; she works for the Organisation. Haruhi, Shizuka. Shizuka, Haruhi."

"...pleased to meet you."

"May we come in?"

"Sure."

We entered the hall, the afternoon sun shining on our backs and casting long shadows into the dark house.

"Want a coffee?"

"Sure."

"No thank you."

Shizuka was oddly quiet. She just smiled innocently when I looked at her, but she was looking around the apartment carefully as she walked. The pile of unopened mail was still acting as an impromptu doorstop and discarded coats and papers and such still lined the floors, and Shizuka was eyeing it all with disgust and something else, possibly pity.

"Take a seat. I'll be back in a minute."

"Thank you."

I took my usual beanbag, adopting a serious pose atop a mostly-purple sack of tiny balls. Shizuka took the creaking sofa cautiously, smoothing out her skirt as she sat down, before adopting a similar pose to mine as we waited.

"Is it always like this?" She mouthed, prodding the mess of a floor lightly with her foot. I nodded.

"Here." Haruhi passed me another styrofoam cup of steaming black liquid. I accepted it with a smile and set it on the table to cool. Haruhi sat down next to Shizuka furthest from me, holding a cup of her own in two hands like a warmer.

"Well?" She asked quietly.

Shizuka responded first, pulling the folder out from under her arm. "Here. Something from Yutaka."

"Don't know what's in it?"

"I'm sorry, no."

"Hmph. Probably confidential then; I'll open it later."

She set it aside on one of the sofa's 'arms'.

We held a pause, whilst Haruhi sipped her cup cautiously. Shizuka fidgeted with her hands.

"Haruhi..." I began. Damn it, I still don't really know what to say...

"Is there anything wrong?"

"Hmm?"

"Is there anything wrong?" Shizuka repeated.

"No... things are just a bit... urgh." Haruhi shrugged in irritation.

"Gets you down, huh?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I guess that's it."

"Want to talk about it?"

"...Hpmh. Just Kyon being... Kyon, I guess. 'Look at me, I'm Mister Unflappable!'. Got everything he's dreamed of – literally – and he still acts like a non-committal prick."

I winced. "That's a little..."

"What?" Haruhi shot back, looking up at me. "He is! He's practically the star of his own TV show or something! I mean, talk about wish fulfillment..." She ran a hand through her hair angrily. "Eaurgh! He's got everything he's subconsciously wanted all his life and he's pushing it away! It makes me want to hit him. Repeatedly."

Shizuka chuckled. I sipped away quietly at the sweetened bitter black whatever-coffee-is-actually-made-of, watching over the rim of the cup as Haruhi continued her little rant.

"And as long as he's being indecisive, we're the ones who suffer for it because we're hiding it from him anyway as any _sensible _method of solving this problem will end the world entirely the moment the Canopy pounces on us to steal him out from under our grasp, the moment he realises we've been hiding everything from him the whole time! It makes me... just... _graah!"_

She pulled at her ribbons irritably. She's actually quite correct: the moment Kyon accepts this weirdness entirely, we're also quite screwed. The Canopy is staying at the sidelines right now – sure it nips at our sides on occasion but that's just it being opportunistic and trying to weaken us for the endgame scenario, and we do the same thing in return. And that day will come the second Kyon figures it out.

Shizuka patted Haruhi on the shoulder sympathetically like a mother figure. I just mulled everything over behind the brim of polystyrene.

Given time, he'll probably forgive us. Given time, he'll probably swing around to our view. Given time, he'll understand.

The Sky Canopy will not give him that time. There is a window, between discovery and forgiveness, that he will push us away in fear, panic, teenage angst, whatever whilst he tries to think it over and comprehend it. During that window... the SCD – via Tachibana and the Opposition – will strike, and everything ends.

That's why we have to keep things from him. If he's innocent of all this, and the SCD strikes, he will fight them. If he's afraid of us and confused, he can be manipulated into joining them. That's the problem, the Catch-22.

We never actually told Haruhi that; she must have worked it out on her own. Clever girl.

"And _Mikuru! _Bloody Mikuru! What the hell is she thinking?!" Haruhi blurted. I suddenly realised I'd just tuned most of her rant out entirely. Oops.

"I'm sure she's just being sympathetic." Shizuka consoled, rubbing Haruhi's back to try and make her relax.

"_Sympathetic? _She's _Mikuru – _she's always sympathetic! It's practically all that's left of her! We need to keep some distance or he'll get too close and everything unravels! Can't she see that? That idiot!"

Shizuka was too confused to reply, and so kept rubbing her back. I should probably mention that her only exposure to the Mikurus is through the older version. She's never met the younger version; she's never been to the mansion. Probably because she'd be recognised, actually, now that I think about it.

"And you! You, Itsuki! You never listen to a damn thing I say!"

I choked on my coffee. Given that it was still hot-to-scalding, it hurt quite a bit.

"Stop spluttering, you know I'm right! I have to practically write up on something big and heavy and smack you across the head with it before you get it!"

Shizuka chuckled.

"For a so-called playboy, you're understanding of women is practically nil!"

Shizuka laughed.

"Well excuse me for having focus!"

Shizuka stopped laughing. Haruhi blinked.

"I have to defend you in the Councils!" I croaked hoarsely, the scalding coffee having done a number on my vocal chords and forcing me to raise my voice just to get any sound out. "I have to fight to keep you safe, hell, I even have to carry a gun and have a list of people I'm supposed to just shoot on sight!"

Suzumiya paled. I just scowled.

"At least you get to prance around driving the Second up the wall to your heart's content; I can't even _pretend _I'm a normal person. So excuse me if, compared to, say, keeping the world from ending, _flirting with girls_ isn't exactly high on my priority list!"

Then I finished my coffee and realised what I'd just said. "Ah... sorry, forget what I just said. Doesn't matter..."

She chuckled guardedly as though concealing a wince. "Heh... yeah." A pause. "Sorry, forgot about that."

"I didn't mean-"

"-me neither."

Shizuka fidgeted awkwardly, then - "D-did I give you that folder?"

Haruhi nodded and nudged the sofa arm, unintentionally making said folder slide off onto the floor. "Yeah."

"Then I should probably be going! Good talking with you!" She rushed, whilst Haruhi grumbled and leaned over the sofa arm to dig around in the floor and fish the folder back.

"Me too." I added. Shizuka gave me a warning look, which I returned. Yes, I know I need to talk to Haruhi. I need to talk to _you _first.

Shizuka nodded and let me follow her out the door.

"Is it always like that?"

I blinked, having not even had enough time to _start _asking my question. "Like what?"

"_That. _All melancholic and forced."

I sighed and looked away. "...yes. Though not usually that bad."

Shizuka crossed her arms and looked at me seriously. "You can't let her bottle things up like that. That's where all the frustration and stress comes from." _That's where the Closed Space comes from._ "And I doubt the décor helps."

I blinked. Haruhi's apartment was just white walls and wood floors for the most part, nothing particularly garish, I couldn't see where-

"I'm not talking about the colours, damn it, that apartment's a mess!"

Oh. "Well... yes." Mine's worse.

Shizuka tapped her foot and frowned, clearly lost in thought. "Hmm... no time, right?"

"Not really, no."

"But she's away from the apartment for long periods of time, right?"

I nodded. "For school and such, yes."

"Can't you hire a cleaner or something?"

I chuckled. "No, we thought of that one. Too much classified material lying around. Yutaka would murder us. Well, me."

"I could get someone from the Organisation to do it."

I blinked. Whilst I could hardly walk up to someone and order them to go clean Haruhi's flat, she could easily. And they'd have to actually listen.

"That... that would be a great help, actually."

Shizuka smiled "It's a deal then. And it'll make my workload easier too." She offered a hand.

I shook it gladly.

* * *

"I'm back."

"Hey."

I flopped into the beanbag as Haruhi emptied her cup.

"Hmm..."

"..."

"..."

"You okay?"

"...Yeah."

She drew her knees in again. "Sorry about earlier."

"No offence taken; I'm sorry too."

"Did you mean it?"

"...Mean what?"

"About the... normal thing."

I smiled wistfully. "I was... probably exaggerating." Just a bit.

"Can I help?"

"Nah. It's not that bad, I guess."

Haruhi nodded to herself in her little corner of the sofa. "See you on Saturday."

I nodded back, taking my cue to leave. "Same to you."

* * *

Wednesday was Wednesday. On Thursday, Shizuka left on her trip to China with Kimidori running escort to advise the SRU group there. Kanzaki let me know, with a less than subtle warning that they were now even more understrength, so would you please Not Fuck Up? Friday was more or less the same as Wednesday, save for another home-made bento from someone-or-other. Thus, having run through the full week...

Cue Saturday.

"Koizumi! It's about time!"

I smiled wryly as passers-by gave us odd looks.

"Morning, Haruhi."

Said demigod smiled like she was gonna eat the world now. "Greetings, subordinate!"

I chuckled and drew up alongside her beneath the lamppost on the station corner. "Where are the others?"

"Not here yet?"

"Well, yes, I can see that..."

Her smile simply segued into a crafty cat-grin as she leaned against my side with her eyes closed. What are you so manic about this morning? Kyon isn't here.

"Hey Itsuki?"

"Mm?"

"Do you know something?"

"What?"

"When I came home to my apartment yesterday..."

Haruhi's sly smile somehow managed to grow even wider.

"...something had gone terribly wrong..."

You don't look too sad about it.

She opened her eyes. If I had to choose a word to describe the feeling she was trying to get across, I would say 'exaggerated'.

"It was completely unrecognisable!"

Oh, I think I know what's happened now.

"Itsuki?"

"Yes?"

"Did you browbeat some unlucky drone into cleaning my apartment for me?"

"No."

"A~ah, don't lie, Itsuki-kun... honestly, if you were to be willing to blackmail and bully for my sake, I'd be very happy, you know?"

...doesn't the Organisation do that already?

Like a twig snapping or a breaker being flipped, Haruhi switched to an irritated frown.

"Gods, you really don't know how to flirt do you?"

...huh? "What?"

She was poking me in the side now. "You. Flirting. You suck at it."

"I-I don't suck at flirting!"

Poke poke poke. "Yes you do. You suck at it all the time."

"I-"

"Honestly, why on earth did they ever give you a playboy persona? All you've got is a pretty face!"

Oh, because you can talk! "It works!"

"No it doesn't."

"Yes it does!"

"No it doesn't."

"_Yes it does_. I get homemade bentos from girls all the time!"

"Oh puh-_lease. _I've seen those things. Burnt rice, scorched seaweed, still flapping around pieces of fish? You can't woo any girls worth their salt and you know it!"

Why am I defending myself? Why are even talking about this? When did the topic take a sudden left turn into Crazy Street?!

"Yes I can. All I have to do is smile ambiguously and make a few enigmatic comments! It works!"

Haruhi snorted. "Oh really? Then go and woo one. Go on, just right off the street, take your pick!"

It should be noted that, by this point, we'd somehow managed to attract a crowd. One half of said crowd took a nervous step back; guess which.

Haruhi's smile reigned triumphant. "My point stands!"

My shoulders sagged in defeat. Damnit Haruhi...

A female hand took my own.

"Come on," Haruhi said with an honest smile. "Let me take you somewhere."

* * *

Haruhi lead me through the crowds like an expert. Then again, she probably does know the area far better than I do, so I guess it makes sense. Some of the nearby pedestrians who'd seen us 'at work' earlier shot us amused looks, mostly at our hands; Haruhi was still dragging me around by mine like a dog on a lead.

"Hey Itsuki, want to feel like a normal person?" Haruhi asked quietly. I nearly missed it over the sounds of the crowd and a particularly energetic street vendor.

"Huh?"

"Normal. You ever wanted to feel like that?"

Well... "...yes..."

Haruhi smiled. She was ahead of me, so I couldn't see it clearly, but I could guess what kind it would be.

* * *

You know this situation, right?

It's common to all such stories. Every teenage tragedy has one. When you have a group of people alienated from society do their efforts to save it from something well beyond the bounds of commonplace normality, you always have at least one such scene. A scene where two such people attempt to have a normal moment, a bit of peace, silence and prosperity. A chance to relax and be themselves without their crushing weights on them.

Of course, following the rules of Narrative Causality, this moment is always broken. Something always goes wrong. It's why the scene always appears in the middle of the story; it allows for the build up of the situation, a display of desperation and fear the characters have to face; this is what makes the scene initially tug the heartstrings. A chance to see what they're normally like, how they can still be fun and quirky even if the world is a half-empty crapsack throwing shit at fans at every occasion? But we have a movie here, a story to tell, and where is a story without drama? Thus, the moment is always broken, and badly. It's not a moment of heartwarming or character development at all; it's a moment of tragedy, the point of pride and hope set up just before the fall, the calm before the storm, the... oh you you get the idea. The term is 'Hope Spot', I believe. It fits.

Unfortunately, the triumvirate of Ladies Luck, Fate and Drama don't seem to like us very much. Haruhi had been planning on taking me to a cinema, then a café and finally an ordinary shopping trip.

We never even got through the first door.

* * *

"-and it looks like a pretty good comedy, too! I think you'll like it!"

"Sounds go-ah, one second-"

"What is it?"

"Phone."

Switch, flip. "Koizumi Itsuki speaking."

"**++Code_612_Recall++**" _Beeeeeep._

"..."

"Koizumi? What is it?"

"Emergency Recall Order."

It was a good thing we were already holding hands; I was able to drag her back towards the Mansion without missing a second.

* * *

Within the Mansion, there is a room. This should go without saying; it's a mansion, there's a lot of rooms. This one's different. There are no paintings on the walls, no rich peruvian carpets on the floors, no towering stone arches or impressive busts of age old heroes long gone by. Instead there are computer terminals, wires and hastily rigged industrial lights hanging from the ceiling.

This is the Organisation's Emergency Centre, aka "The Clusterfuck Committee". Right now, it was living up to its name.

"-No response from the Zhang group-"

"-telegraphics cannot confirm-"

"Damnit, use the satellites if you have to!"

"-can't raise them sir-"

"-phone link with the Wongs; they don't have a clue what's-"

"What's going on?" Haruhi asked at my side.

Sonou Mori stood at the front of the room, surrounded by a communication booth and switching headsets with increasing frustration. Runners were, well, running, bits of telegraphed or typed messages and images clutched in white hands. The Tamarus were leafing through reports and shouting orders to their subordinates whilst trying to make sense of everything themselves.

Do I even have to say it? Complete bedlam is what was going on here.

There was a double whip-crack of displaced air as Katari and another, male Interface wearing a suit whom I didn't recognise appeared from nowhere in an empty space nearby and rushed off in different directions, the male one jogging over to the Tamarus with a sad look on his face, Katari marching calmly to Mori's side.

"-still no location from Kanzaki-"

"-Miss Nagato is guarding the-"

"-No signal from-"

"-The car tracers aren't responding-"

"-Who's going to tell him?"

"W-What happened?" Haruhi asked again. I didn't know, but I could find out.

"Koizumi? What are you doing here!?" Mori blurted out angrily as I approached.

"I got a Recall Order: all agents must return to the Mansion immediately."

Sonou scowled and turned back to her communication sets, plugging in and plugging out different headsets trying to get a signal. Katari turned her indifferent head to face mine.

"At 0800 hours precisely, contact was lost with the Kasagi expedition to the Wong and Zhang groups of the Organisation-China division within the PRC. We are attempting to ascertain and confirm the relevant data surrounding this event."

Suzumiya paled; I frowned. "Is that enough to issue an E.R.O?"

Katari pondered. Or tilted her head to one side; might not mean the same thing with her. "We have been experiencing major data flares in the surrounding area these past 24.761 minutes in a complex pattern; the next should occur in 2.12 seconds-"

**++WARNING:_DATA_FLARE_DETECTED!++**

"-like so." At my questioning look, Katari looked vaguely irritated. "There are multiple theories and alternative solutions, Koizumi-san. Please be patient until we can confirm one over another."

Somewhere in the back, someone shouted "We've got a satellite link!"

Katari looked up with a faint smile. "See? We are gathering data even now. Your questions will be answered soon."

I followed her gaze to one of the large screens taking up one entire wall at the opposite end of the room. A satellite image took up the entire screen. It showed a green splodge with a faint brown streak running through it. As the techs zoomed the image in, it was revealed to be a country road. Another zoom, and a trail of smoke could be seen. Mori and Katari both narrowed their eyes at the sight. Another zoom, and again.

A line of black vans and Range-Rovers, all on their sides and burning. Small, volatile dots scattered around them, flashing occasional bursts of light. It took me a moment to realise they were people and the flashes gunshots.

**++WARNING:_DATA_FLARE_DETECTED!++**

Mori slammed her fist into the console.

One of the cars exploded into a blooming fireball. Katari's eyes narrowed even further into deadly slits as she mouthed two words...

"Well that confirms that." Mori muttered darkly.

Strange light distortions twirled around another and-

**++WARNING:_DATA_FLARE_DETECTED!++**

-boom.

"W-What _is _that!"

"Beta Series." Katari stated coldly.

"It's the Canopy. They just took out Shizuka and 17 others."

"Now we're _really _understaffed..." Keichii sighed. Mori unplugged her last headset and tossed it down on the console.

**++WARNING:_DATA_FLARE_DETECTED!++**

A large part of the road suddenly turned red.

"Keichii, you have command. I need to find Kanzaki."

* * *

End of Chapter Three


	4. Rewrite Notice

**Rewrite Notice**

Taking into account a number of factors, I am going to be rewriting Parallel Running, for a variety of reasons:  
1) Having re-watched the series, I can see several places where I've accidentally kicked Canon in the nads, and several opportunities for interesting plots / character development that I missed by not reading far enough ahead.  
2) The original has a few flaws (Mori needs a bit of reworking and Haruhi is possibly a bit _too_ OOC). And I missed out a really important scene...  
3) I wrote myself into a corner for Chapter 4. Sounded awesome in note form, but when it came to actually writing the certain sequence in question, it suddenly became blatantly obvious that it would give the whole game away to pretty every person in Japan within a few days. And I can't work around it because I put so much build-up into Chapter 3 it would look weird without this certain scene appearing... *facepalm*  
4) Other general story issues that were making things unwieldy - I need to more the Organisation - Opposition fight a little more into the Closed Space realm than the ordinary world. Again, it's a problem. And I'll sound less like some mad gun-nut (for the record, I did some prior research on wikipedia _)  
5) Too many things going on at once / a few unnecessary plot threads. Itsuki becoming an unknowing SCD spy? That was a stupid idea...  
6) I broke Mikuru. Whoops.  
7) Dodgy pacing. Whoops. Too much plot shuffling all at once = characters have little time to just be themselves.  
8) The original version actually contradicts itself on multiple occasions... whoops.

Don't worry, this won't be a massive rewrite! Most of Chapter 3 will probably be ditched, but Chapter 1 will be mostly intact, save for a few changes (and being split up into smaller bits). Plus, it'll be less depressing. That's the other reason I've been getting a tad disenchanted with it... not enough heartwarming / silly / characters just acting like characters and being normal to offset the doom and gloom. Waah emo.

I'll also be splitting the chapters up a bit, again based on earlier advice, so that they aren't so stupidly long. Should just make things a lil' tad easier, and means a more regular update schedule (not that there's actually going to _be_ a schedule... _)

I'll leave this old version up in case anyone still wants to read it. It has it's flaws, though.

See you soon!  
-MrCJ


End file.
